The Sparrow and the Magpie
by Tabbytha
Summary: COMPLETED AT LONG LAST. Annie has just lost the most important person in the world...her mum. But what will happen when she suddenly gets sucked into POTC world and learns that she has to save the world along with Jack? First Fanfic please R&R!
1. She's Dead

A/N...ok so this is my first ever fanfiction so please read and review! This story didn't start out as having anything to do with POTC but it sort of turned into one. They all seem to do that for some reason...I wonder why? Ok anyway on with the story!!! All reviews, nasty or nice, are greatly accepted!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with POTC...unfortunately sniff sniff BUT I do have the film on DVD and soundtrack!!! Does that count???....no? Poo. Ok sop I don't own Jack sniff or Will sniff or the Black Pearl...BUT I DO own Annie!!! She's my little character...ok maybe not so little!  
  
Ok I'm going to shut up now! Here is the story!! Read, enjoy (hopefully) and REVIEW (please!!)  
  
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Chapter one: She's dead  
  
I sat alone not wanting to face the truth. The sounds of the corridor filled my ears. The squeak of a bed, the scream of a woman. There was a woman kneeling beside me. She had cold hands, they chilled my soul.  
  
Squeak squeak squeak.  
  
Why won't it shut up? Why can't it leave me alone? She was talking...softly, quietly, slowly. I couldn't hear her.  
  
Squeak squeak squeak.  
  
Why can't I be left in peace? The smell of dinner made my stomach turn. I felt sick, ill.  
  
Squeak squeak squeak.  
  
Can't someone stop that? My hands were being held. It was the woman...why was she still here? She was still talking, murmuring in that quiet voice of hers. Why was she talking to me? Why would I want to listen to her?  
  
Squeak squeak squeak...  
  
"SHUT UP!" I yelled "shut up I can't take it anymore stop that damned squeaking"  
  
It stopped. I had stopped it. I blinked and looked around. The woman was looking at me with pity and so was the rest of the corridor. All those faces...those patronising faces. Why? I turned to my coat which hung limply by my side and picked it up. I walked into the room where my mother was. She wasn't there. Neither was my sister, my baby sister. So I turned and went home.  
  
They all stared at me. But I didn't care. They told me to phone my dad. But he wouldn't care either. They tried to stop me, they said I was too young. But I really didn't care.  
  
I sat at home and stared at my wall. All those posters, all the men I had devoted my teenage hood to. They couldn't help me now. The phone was ringing.  
  
"MUM!! Will you get that..." no wait she wasn't there. They told me she had gone to live with the Angels and God with my little sister. They patronised me, as if I didn't know that she was dead! Dead...mum?  
  
I woke up the next morning lying in the same place where I had slumped the night before. My clothes stuck to me in an uncomfortable way. Why was I awake so early? There was someone at the door, that's why. Goddammed door. I grumbled and stood up. I thought I'd be worse than this. My mum was dead and I was acting like it was a school day. School!!! I was late!!! I threw on my clothes and grabbed my bag pushing the death of my only family out of my head. The person at the door was getting angrier.  
  
"YES IM COMING!" stupid person whoever it was. Brian...the guy from next door.  
  
"Why are you so late? We should have left ages ago! How's your mum, did she have the baby yet?"  
  
Mum and the baby. That's all he ever talked about. You'd think that he didn't have a wife and kids of his own the way he went on about mum. He was staring at me.  
  
"I'd rather not talk about it" I murmured.  
  
"She's not had it yet then?" he looked disappointed.  
  
"I guess you could say that"  
  
We travelled to school. The journey was long and I felt ill again. It must be the leather seats of his. He thinks he's so it with his leather seats always flaunting them about like they were God's own crown.  
  
"Why don't you talk more? You never have been the chatty type have you?"  
  
I ignored him. The truth is I love to talk. I just don't like talking to the ignorant people of this world. I sit at home and watch my films, I read my stories. That's where I can escape from this hell I live in. One of my favourites...Pirates of the Caribbean. The best film ever. Pirates are people who I can relate to. They love adventure, ships and the sea. They seem like the best people to be around. Mum always used to go on at me all the time 'Its all Pirates this and Pirates that with you Annie'...mum. Why did you...  
  
"Are you listening to me? Annie?? Oh I give up with you girl."  
  
Eccentric old fool. He run's me to school everyday in exchange for one of mum's cherry pies per week. I don't know why he does it. He doesn't like me and I don't like him.  
  
We arrived at school finally. I got out and slammed the door in his face not wanting to say 'thank you' to such a jerk as he. I passed through the school gates. Why was I here? Of all places?  
  
The comments started 'oooh Annie's in school I'd watch out she'll give you the quiet disease', 'Annie's gonna marry pirates because she smells'. They are so pathetic. Why would I marry pirates if I smelt? Usually it doesn't get to me but things were different today. Something inside of me built up...not the pain but the anger. I wanted to kill them...send them to hell so they knew how I was feeling. Why was I feeling like hell? Mum.  
  
I sat behind my school desk and got out my books. Automatically I turned to my pirate page. It was filled with pictures which I had drawn of Jack Sparrow, ships and birds flying free. I wish I was free instead of sitting here. The teacher entered and began the lesson. My book was taken off me. Now what should I do? Mum.  
  
Listen to the teacher that's the best way to get rid of this thing in my head. He droned on and the comments started whispering behind me 'she's actually listening!! BOFFIN!" I looked out the window instead.  
  
It was sunny...mum loved sunny days.  
  
I looked inside. There was the picture of the skeleton from Biology class.  
  
Mum. Black, grass, stone. Everything reminded me of her. Why did she have to go? No concentrate on something else. Flowers.  
  
Mum you said you'd be there for me! No come on think of something else. Black pen.  
  
Mum why did you leave? Snap out of it!!  
  
I was there first...I told you not to have another baby...why didn't you listen to me?? You wanted her even if I didn't. You said we'd be a proper family. You said things would get so much better when she was born. THINGS CAN'T BE BETTER WHEN YOUR DEAD!!! Please don't leave my like this! I'm all-alone. Grans too old and dad doesn't care anymore...why did you have to leave??  
  
I broke down in the middle of class. Tears streamed from my eyes. The teacher came over with that patronising face. The one that makes you shudder and scream inside "IM NOT A BABY!!". I stood up not wanting to hear his voice. No one knew...no one realised how I was feeling. The whole class was gaping at me in awe. I never cried...it was a term that they had gotton used to. I just sulked. But now I couldn't stop the tears from flowing. The murmurs of dull witted classmates filled my ears and they reminded me of the previous night, of the nurse and HER murmurs. What was it she said? I can't remember. My nose was getting runny and I must have looked a state. I didn't care. My legs were running although I don't know where to. Through door after door, down corridor after corridor.  
  
Mum...where are you? The teacher was running after me calling out my name. I just ran faster...I had to escape...I had to get out of this place. The door was in view and I burst out into the sunlight. I stared up into the sky and wondered if that was where she was. Was she in heaven? Was she up there with my little sister enjoying herself? Laughing and pointing...pointing at me? Why was I thinking this way? I loved my mum. She meant the world to me. So why did she have the baby even after I said that it was wrong? I clutched my head and moaned. I had to get these thoughts out of my head. Instead I ran. The cars bustled noisily and the sound of a plain went overhead. My teacher was still running after me. I usually would have laughed at the situation because I was the best at running. I always had been and always will be. I once ran ten miles without stopping so that I could be there when mum married man number two. Mum...  
  
I picked up speed and finally lost my teacher. He collapsed into a heap wheezing unceremoniously. I kept running. I was near my special place right in the middle of the park. I climbed the tree and hid in a hole which I made in the dead bark when I was nine. It was just big enough for me to fit in and I was completely hidden from sight. I always came here whether it was after an argument with mum or whether I was on the run from the police...I never was very good at keeping to the law. I was always in constant 'scrapes' as mum would call it. We used to laugh when I came home late in the evenings being dropped off by a policeman. She was always a good sport.  
  
I sat huddled in the tree. Day became night and night became day.  
  
Two weeks had passed and I scrabbled out of bed clutching my stomach and grumbling. I was starving and there was no way I was going to leave the house to get food. The police had been in search for me since I ran away from school. They had broken down the door to our house and searched for me everywhere. I know because I watched them from the other side of the road. Since then I have been sleeping in an old and deserted warehouse. People are always doing it in films and seeing as I live in the city there are loads of them going so I thought it'd be a perfect way to pass the days. School was no longer an option. They'd take me into care and I'd have to live with a new mum. Well I had a mum...even if she wasn't alive anymore.  
  
I searched the box where I hid the food I had stolen on the first few days before I realised that they were everywhere looking for me. It was a good thing that I wasn't caught that day. Once again my running skills came into practice. It was no good. I needed food and my stomach was growling like an angry pet who wanted attention. There was an old blanket lying in the corner of the room...should I risk it? Fifteen minuets later I was covered in the moth eaten rug and walking quickly towards the nearest shop. It wasn't unusual to see a tramp roaming the streets and nobody had to be any the wiser as to who I was. I passed the park, the block of flats and the cemetery. Then I stopped. Mum had been buried there, I saw the funeral...at a distance. They obviously hoped that I would go so they could capture me and there were two policemen at the funeral along with Brian and a few others. I felt bad for not going and I still hadn't gotten close to mum's grave. Should I go? I peered around me...there was no-one there. The gate swung open by a gust of wind as though it wanted me to go in. I silently passed the graves taking one flower from each bunch that lay upon the mound - hoping that they wouldn't mind. I reached mum. Her grave was covered in flowers and the ones from Brian lay nearest the headstone.  
  
Here Lies  
Harriet Magpie  
Beloved and devoted mother  
  
Also lies  
  
Milly Magpie  
Who was loved so dearly by God that he took her early to  
live with him  
RIP  
  
I felt a tear form in my eye. She loved the name Milly and wanted it to be my name but my Dad refused. He said it was a silly name that you should call a dog or cat. I reached down to move the flowers that Brian had placed. It was only right that my flowers went nearest the stone even if they were stolen. I stopped and stared down at the patch of land under his flowers. Instead of being the brown of mud it was a hazy blue. What was going on? I moved more flowers...it was the same under them. It shimmered and swirled in the light. My eyes were almost popping...what in hell was it?? I removed all of the flowers from my mothers grave and stared gob- smacked at the swirling blue mist which formed only around her grave. I stared at the other graves...brown mud. I reached down to touch it but paused briefly. It was getting thicker as my hand got nearer. I plunged my hand into it. Immediately I felt a swirling sickness wave over me. My head began to fog up and my vision was going bleary. I couldn't remove my hand from it! What was happening to me? The world began to spin and grow darker. I was falling through air trying to scream. But nothing came out of my mouth. It grew darker and darker until I gave into the pressing darkness that surrounded me and knew no more.  
  
The sound of gently lapping waves hit me and I rolled over trying to get back to sleep. I was having the most bizarre dream that I was falling through the air in the dense darkness. Someone had their hand on my shoulder and was shaking me viciously. I began to open my eyes slowly to stare at the room around me. Immediately I sat bolt upright. Where was I? 


	2. To Meet a Sparrow

A/N ok so I finally got to POTC mode! Hope you enjoy this story and remember REVIEWS ARE WELCOMED WITH OPEN ARMS!!!  
  
Disclaimer: Ok so the same thing as last time...what? No I refuse to repeat it...no I'm not going to say it folds arms and turns back to Fanfiction people who make the rules...oooh!! Why do I have to say it??? Ok... I don't own Jack or Will or anything related to POTC but I really really wish I did!!!  
  
BTW I just found something BIG out!!! Apparently the next POTC movie is going to be called: Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Treasures of the Lost Abyss!!!!! How cool!!!  
  
Ok so on with the story!  
  
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Chapter 2: To meet a Sparrow  
  
My head was still swimming but I didn't care. I hadn't a clue where I was or who this person that was standing beside me was. The room swayed from side to side in a fast notion that made me feel ill. I rubbed my eyes in a panic and turned to the man on my side. He looked familiar although I couldn't quite place where I had seem him before. He spoke in a harsh voice which made my spine shiver.  
  
"What do yea think ye' doin'?" he spat at me, "the Cap'n's not gona be happy 'bout this. To think a stowaway!"  
  
He grabbed my arm and pulled me violently towards the door. I stumbled still completely unaware of where I was. The whole place rocked backwards and forwards so quickly that I had to be dragged by this man to where ever it was that I was going. Terrible sounds of crashing and flashes came from outside somewhere telling me that there was a storm going on.  
  
I heard the clank of a lock and I was thrown head-first into a cell and locked in. The man had gone before I could ask why I was here.  
  
It was pitch black in the cell and still it rocked heavily. I could feel my empty stomach growling again...not for food this time but to vomit. I doubled over and threw up all over the dark floor and the pain of throwing up on an empty stomach hit me. I sat down and shook with coldness and fright. The dream was real. I had been falling.  
  
Hours passed by and the storm above seemed to calm down which made the room rock less until it became a slow swaying motion. Suddenly the creak of a door opening filled my ears and the bright light of a candle blinded my eyes. I clasped my hands over my face and huddled myself into a corner. I could hear the voices of two men. Both of which seemed extremely familiar. But where had I heard them before?  
  
"Ere she is Cap'n found 'er in the food stock"  
  
"Are yea sure she's alright?" asked the second voice.  
  
It was calm and soft instead of the hard voice of the other man. The clink of the lock cracked in the air startling me. I tried to open my eyes squinting at the two men. One was mid-height and rather plump around the face and the other was slightly shorter, muscular and had his hands hanging out in an odd position as if he had recently been using them for some action.  
  
The light stung my eyes so I snapped them shut again.  
  
"Leave her be" said the first voice as the other man grabbed my hair.  
  
The man reluctantly let go and took a few steps back so that the 'Captain' could interrogate me.  
  
I felt him crouch down beside me and I breathed in a rich smell of salty sea breeze, rum and a delicious smell of manly scent. My eyes began adjusting to the light so I opened them slowly scared of what this man was about to do to me. He was just sitting there staring at me. His baggy shirt was loose revealing the muscular, tanned look of his body. My eyes darted wildly taking in every piece of this man that I could see. From the rough but gentle looking hands plastered with rings to the red bandanna keeping his wild dreadlocks into place.  
  
He looked...familiar...really familiar but I couldn't quite place my finger on it as my head was still swimming.  
  
"Who are yea and what are yeh doin' on my ship?" he asked. I looked up into his eyes...those chocolate brown eyes that made my knees buckle. They were so familiar. Why couldn't I remember?  
  
"Well?" he questioned.  
  
My mouth was dry and gummed up. I hadn't had a drink in ages and I was so thirsty. I tried opening my mouth but it was hopeless. The familiar man seemed to know what was the problem and called over his shoulder to the man behind.  
  
"Gibbs!"  
  
"Aye Cap'n?"  
  
"Hand me your flask"  
  
"Cap'n?!?!?" the man replied obviously outraged.  
  
"I said hand me yeh flask. I'd appreciate it if yeh' followed me orders savvy?" The man handed over a small brown flask with a quiet "aye Cap'n" for an apology.  
  
The Captain handed me the flask and I was so thirsty that I downed it without questioning what it was. The strong liquid passed down my throat making me gasp and cough. But it had done the trick and I felt my tongue slowly coming back to life.  
  
"W...w...where am I?" I stuttered, "who are you and what are you going to do t...t...to me?"  
  
His brows frowned at me slightly.  
  
"I think I'll be asking the questions luv," he stated clearly. There was a look in his eyes that told me he was getting annoyed with me. "Who are yeh and why are yea on my ship?" he asked again.  
  
"S...s...ship?" I shivered. I always stuttered when I was nervous. His brows frowned dangerously. "I'm A...a...Annie". Snap out of it! Your not scared...you scared. "I'm not scared" I whispered to myself.  
  
"Oh your not are yeh?" he chuckled.  
  
I blushed and shot a glance at the man, Gibbs, standing behind him who was not so quick to laugh. The Captain turned his head to talk to him for a moment and I had some time to catch my thoughts. Slowly things were coming back to me. I had been sitting in the graveyard and now...now I was locked in a cell with two familiar looking men on a ship. I was dreaming I had to be. I reached up under my t-shirt and pinched hard.  
  
"OUCH!" I gasped. The man turned and looked at me in astonishment, Gibbs had left. "Not dreaming" I whispered more to myself than to him.  
  
"Course your not dreamin'. I want t' know why yeh on me ship" this was the third time he'd asked and it was obvious that his patience was running out.  
  
"I...I don't know" I replied simply.  
  
It as the truth I had no idea where I was or how I got here. I stumbled to try and stand up. The floor was making my head spin dreadfully and I thought that maybe if I stood up it would help.  
  
But it didn't. It was worse standing up and it was clear that my moving had angered the man. The room began to spin and I grabbed the nearest thing to steady myself.  
  
"Going somewhere luv?" came the voice from the thing I had grabbed hold of.  
  
I blinked and looked up into the face of the man. I was holding onto him! I tried to let go, slightly embarrassed, but it only lead to me falling right into him. He lowered me to the floor and propped me up against the cell bars.  
  
"Where am I?" I asked again as the room started coming back into my vision. I was scared now and much to my annoyance I felt a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye. I looked around wildly wondering how to get back home and began to cry.  
  
"Yeh on the Pearl luv" came the man's soothing voice as he held me by the shoulders, "I'm Jack Sparrow, hush now luv"  
  
Jack Sparrow? I knew that name. It had finally clicked into place. Jack Sparrow, Gibbs and a ship...I was in Pirates of the Caribbean.  
  
I felt the room start to sway again but this time I let myself fall into the darkness and I knew no more.  
  
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A/N: hehehe!! Hope you enjoyed the chappie...I personally think it was quite boring but I promise that it will get better!!! And remember reviews are welcomed nasty or nice!! 


	3. Sewing

A/N: Oh thanx so much to LiTtLe-SeRpEnT-gUaRd and Blackcat69 for the reviews! Cookies for you both!! Hands out cookies They have given me a boost to write the next chappie so here it is...  
  
Disclaimer: Ok so I nearly forgot to write this...and I still wish I didn't have to coz writing it makes me feel all depressed and angry. Like WHY CAN'T I OWN THEM?!?!?!? But no I don't. I don't own anything to do with POTC wails and cries but one day I might! Or one night when I'm fast asleep in my dreams.  
  
Chapter 3: Sewing  
  
I awoke to the sound of soft seagulls and the sound of the waves lapping against the side of the boat. Boat?? I sat bold upright to find that I was no longer in the cold darkness of the cell but lying in a soft bed in a room full of light. Memories of the previous time I was conscious came flooding into my head. Pirates of the Caribbean...how? It wasn't possible...surely?  
  
When mum was still alive I used to go on the Internet loads. There was a site I was particularly fond of called Fanfiction and I had always read stories of how people were sucked into the world of Pirates of the Caribbean and joined the crew of Captain Jack Sparrow and I had always wished that it could happen to me. But I had never believed they were true, just silly stories that I loved to read. However since the death of mum I was ready to believe that anything could happen to me.  
  
I stared around the room. Draws open with the mess of dirty shirts and breaches flowing out of them, all manner of scrolls and maps strewn across an untidy desk and hundreds upon hundreds of empty rum bottles. I gaped around the room until I realised where I was. The Captain's quarters.  
  
Just at that moment the man himself came bursting through the door. And I mean bursting. He was being shouted at, by a voice that I distinctively knew as that of Anamaria, and came in chuckling to himself. Just then he noticed that I was awake. I just stared at him. He looked good in the movie but the real (or what I can only assume as 'real') thing was much much more handsome. His dark tanned skin, cheeky smile and muscular body made him, as we would call them back home, a 'babe magnet'.  
  
"Ello luv" he chuckled gleefully, "Glad to see you finally decided to join us"  
  
I stared at him as he busied himself around the room. I didn't understand why he had suddenly decided that I wasn't a stowaway. Surely Captain Sparrow would have to be careful about who was aboard his ship. That was a question best left for another time.  
  
I scrambled out of the bed blushing at the fact that I, Annie Magpie, had just been sleeping in Captain Jack Sparrow's bed! He grinned at me and I made a decision there and then which I would stick to. I wouldn't claim to be who I was...from another world. I would make up that I was a peasant on the run from Commodore Norrington, that I had hit my head and forgotten much about myself. This would cover up most of the fact that I only knew that Port Royal was where the Commodore lived and that Tortuga was where the Pirates drank from the film.  
  
I smiled at Jack. He would never have to know. He came over to me and asked the question which I had just prepared for.  
  
"So you'll be wantin' to stay on the Pearl?" how did he know these things?  
  
"I must have hit my head and...uh...I can't really remember where I am," I was never any good at lying, "I...uuuhhh..."  
  
He frowned at me slightly and waited for me to finish my sentence but seeing as I was just staring at him with a petrified look on my face he decided to speak, "Well you'll be wanting to stay on the Pearl aye? You'll fit in fine but you'll have to pay your way by doin' some jobs savvy?"  
  
"Sure...uh...I mean aye aye Cap'n!"  
  
He chuckled and stood up motioning for me to follow. I followed him out of the door and straight onto the deck. The ship was huge! Its black sails were flailing wildly in the wind, one with a gaping hole in it. I could see a few familiar pirates lowering it down for repairs. Obviously the storm the night before had caused a lot of damage.  
  
Jack walked with complete ease upon the boat. He swayed from side to side in just the right rhythm as the boat was swaying. This was the walk I often re-wound to watch while bursting out with wild laughter. But now it didn't seem so funny, it was me that looked funny. I was wobbling and falling about all over the place trying desperately trying to keep up with him. He turned to laugh at me as I fell into his arms. Once again the embarrassment of it washed over me and I stumbled to stand up grinning.  
  
"No time for cuddles luv, we've got work to do"  
  
"I was NOT trying to cuddle you!" I replied in defence but he just continued laughing and I thought I heard him mumble 'whatever luv'. At that moment Anamaria ran over to him.  
  
"JACK!!! You said you'd take over steering two hours ago!! I haven't had ANY sleep...is this your ship or not?!?!?!? And who is this??" she added pointing a long finger towards me.  
  
"This is Annie Magpie, Annie this is Anamaria"  
  
I smiled politely at Anamaria remembering her temper, but to no avail. She shot me a dirty scowl as though I was a whore of Jack's come along for the ride- which, I reminded myself, she probably did think of me.  
  
She threw her hands up in the air and continued yelling  
  
"I don't care who SHE is!! Are you going to let me have some sleep or do I have to hang myself to get some peace in this world? Now for God's sake will you take the wheel?" she continued ranting and raving until Jack finally cut in.  
  
"Anamaria...ANAMAIRA!!" she fell silent and stared at her captain, "Stop yelling woman! I'm going to remind you that I am Captain of this ship and I will not be spoken to like this savvy? You asked who Annie was so I told ye' and yes I will take over steering! One more word from you and you'll be swimming with the fishies savvy?"  
  
"Aye Cap'n," she replied in a calmer voice which did not quite cover up all of her anger. She left heading for the cabins below.  
  
Jack turned to me and rolled his eyes,  
  
"She'll calm down in an hour or two," I nodded joining in his grin.  
  
"GIBBS!!" he yelled over to the man who was in the cell earlier. Unfortunately I seemed to be in the way of this holler and my left ear went temporarily deaf. "Sorry luv!" he chuckled. This man and his chuckling was getting annoying. Did he ever take anything seriously?? Gibbs came over smiling at me, obvioulsy satisfied that I was not a stowaway either. "Annie's going to help out on board for a while. Annie luv, Gibbs will take care of you for now."  
  
He gave me a cheeky wink and headed off to take the wheel all the while swaying back and forward in rhythm with the ship.  
  
"Follow me Miss Magpie" Gibbs ordered turning and heading for the torn sails which were being bought down.  
  
I tried to mimic Jack's walk and found it was perfect...or would be if I could master it properly.  
  
Gibbs handed me a needle and a large ball of what must be thread. Great, I thought, it was going to be me who would have to sew up the sail.  
  
"Yea know how t' sew don't you?" he asked.  
  
I nodded reluctantly and sat myself on the deck pulling the huge sail towards me. It would take me ages to sew all of this up and I wasn't the best at sewing.  
  
I peered around me while I worked. A great deal of damage had been made by the storm and I was thankful that it was not I hanging from the topmost sails repairing the crack in the pole. If it were me I'd have fallen off ages ago and they would be sweeping my guts into the sea.  
  
However we were still moving. Although one sail was damaged the Pearl seemed to do just fine and I stared at Jack who was slowly guiding his ship through the now calmer waters. His dreadlocks waved slowly in the breeze and I found myself smiling at him. Suddenly he turned to me and flashed me a wink. I blushed and turned back to my work.  
  
The day progressed slowly and many of the crew passed me either smiling at me or trying to flash a manly sexiness...which didn't work AT ALL. Some sat and chatted to me for a while in between working, they were being so nice and I didn't know why. Weren't pirates supposed to be un-social and hating females? But then again there was Anamaria so maybe they were used to it. My fingers started to ache with all the sewing and my mind began to wonder.  
  
I had only seen the sea twice in my whole life. Once on a school trip to the beach which ended terribly due to the fact that everyone was ill, except for me, because of the ride up. We got to glimpse the sea before we had to turn around and head back. The other time was with my mother. She had hauled me out of class for the day and we caught the bus to the seaside. We ate cotton candy and paddled our feet in the freezing cold water for hours. It was a great day until she revealed the reason why she had given me the day off. She was getting married to husband number three. This wasn't a shock to me seeing as I realised how lonely she was after man number two left. But there was more. She was going to have another baby. I was shocked. I always thought it would be me and mum forever, men would come and go as they always did but in the end it would be just me and mum. But now, now it would be me mum and a screaming baby.  
  
Well there would have been me mum and a screaming baby but they were both dead. Gone, left me on my own. I blinked as I felt a few tears in my eyes.  
  
I changed the channel in my head and concentrated on the job at hand. Sewing. The thoughts that I was all alone in this new place without a mother were pushed into the deep crevices in the back of my mind where they would hopefully get lost and never return.  
  
It was getting darker and the sun was setting. It was a beautiful sight and looked like the fiery red sun was being put out by the black sea. The breeze was still warm and I was nearly finished my job. Other pirates had long gone down to the cabins and rooms below but some were still out, finishing the odd job here and there.  
  
I put down the sail at long last stretching my fingers out.  
  
"Finished are you luv?" came a voice from behind me.  
  
I jumped, startled. It was Jack grinning in his usual way, gold teeth flashing in the dying sunlight. I continued to stare out at the darkening sea its waves gently lapping against the hull of the ship.  
  
I could feel him resting on the bar beside me and glanced at him. He was staring out at sea with a glazed look clouding his eyes.  
  
"How did you know my last name was Magpie?" I asked, the question had been burning inside me all day.  
  
"Your tattoo told me luv"  
  
I frowned...I had no tattoo's; my mum would never let me. He turned and frowned at me.  
  
"Surely you remember having a tattoo?" he lifted up the sleeve on my right arm to reveal the blue tattoo of a magpie flying into a sunset over the sea. WHAT?!?!? I had the same tattoo on my arm as Jack but mine was a Magpie instead of a Sparrow.  
  
A chill went running through my spine and I opened my mouth to splutter questions but Jack beat me to it.  
  
"I can't believe I finally found you. After all this time of searching the ocean and you turn up on me own ship! I was going to talk to you about it earlier but...there was no time..." he trailed off in the most unlikely Jack Sparrow way, he never behaved like this.  
  
What was he talking about? He was staring at me as though I was supposed to be answering a question. What was I supposed to say? I had no idea what he was talking about!  
  
"I...um...I'm sorry but I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about" I said hopelessly.  
  
That was when he told me. I couldn't believe it. How could I be? I had only been in this world for a day...  
  
"No, I can't be. You...you've got the wrong girl"  
  
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A/N: Ok so sorry for the cliffie but I gotta put something that makes you want more! Please don't forget to review!!! And if there is something not right with my story please say! This is my first Fanfic and I want to get it right! 


	4. The Sparrow and the Magpie

Disclaimer: Ok ok I think we know this already because I don't own Jack Sparrow...and lets take it if I did what the hell would I be doing wasting my time writing stories??? I'd be laying on a beach or onboard his ship swashbuckling my way to fun fun funness!! But alas no...I am sat here writing chapter four of my story. But I have to admit I really love writing this story!!!  
  
Jack Sparrow: "Look luv carry on with the story savvy?? This is boring and the reviews want to know what's happening!!! Now write or you'll be swimming with the fishies!!"  
  
Ok ok sorry Jack...and sorry reviewers who have been so great in reviewing!! Keep it up guys! And here are some cookies for you all hands out cookies and there is an extra one for LiTtLe-SeRpEnT-gUaRd because her niece stole hers!  
  
Ok so the chappie you've been waiting for...will she be his girlfriend? Wife? Daughter?? Or will she be none of these but something totally different?? Read to find out.  
  
Jack Sparrow: "you still haven't started?!?!?!?"  
  
Me: "I just did and you've spoilt the A/N now!!!"  
  
Jack: "So?"  
  
Grrr the attitudes of some people anyway on with the story!!!  
  
Chapter Four: The Sparrow and the Magpie.  
  
I stared out at the sea gasping for breath. What he told me...it couldn't be true.  
  
A protector for the sea? A protector for mankind? Me?...no. No I couldn't be. I looked at him for an explanation.  
  
"A long time ago a prophet foretold our quest" he began leaning heavily on the side of the ship, "It was said that a man would come who would end the lives of every living man and woman in the world, whether they be pirate or none."  
  
I stared at him in disbelief. This was nonsense, it had to be.  
  
"She said that many thousands of men would fall trying to defeat him but his power would be too great for them to muster. This all so far has come true. Many towns and ports have also been lost. When we found you last night it was no ordinary storm but one sent by him to take out any who might be passing through these waters."  
  
My eyebrows had raised several inches above my eyes. It sounded like some elaborate tale but Jack's face was serious and filed with anger towards this man.  
  
"He doesn't always attack the sea and we have been fortunate for it but things are getting worse" he continued in a hushed voice so as the crew could not hear. "I don't want to worry the crew"  
  
I nodded.  
  
"The prophet said there would only be one way to defeat him. She said that a Sparrow and a Magpie would together combine their strengths and it would be the downfall of him. Of course no one understood what it meant at the time, they all thought she was a batty old cow"  
  
He paused to let out a low chuckle.  
  
"But two years after her death they found this"  
  
He slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out an extremely tatty and old piece of paper and handed it to me.  
  
I opened it and gasped at its contents. There were two diagrams, one was the tattoo of a Sparrow which lay on Jack's arm, and the other was the new tattoo of a Magpie which lay on my arm.  
  
"One hundred years ago, long before either of us was born, she died. We are the ones to kill this man, it lays on our shoulders."  
  
I stared at him. My heart had stopped, the waves were silent and the gentle breeze which had been blowing at us had ceased altogether.  
  
"I can't be this woman," I finally said, "I have none of these strengths you talk about. I'm a peasant and I'm not even one of those!" I could feel tears in the back of my throat again which threatened to spill over. I didn't want to be here. I wanted to be back at home safe and warm in my bed with my mum by my side whispering soothe things in my ears to get me to sleep. I didn't want to be stood on a ship with half the lives of the world on my shoulders.  
  
"You're joking aren't you?" I whispered. He looked at me. This was not the Jack Sparrow I knew. Not the Jack Sparrow who heroically saves Elizabeth but still manages to escape death within inches of his life. This was not Jack Sparrow. But it was. I was confused in my head. It felt as though a great storm was taking place in the middle of my brain, wind gushing past the inside of my ears, the clap of lightening piercing down straight through my memory. But through all this noise and confusion I could still hear one voice. Jack Sparrow.  
  
He continued now reciting the words of this woman or prophet:  
  
"These two, both man and woman, will come from an outlawed party on the run from the law. Their blood will run black together to defeat the powers of the evil in the world."  
  
He removed a knife from his pocket and took hold of my hand. He made a small cut in the palm of my hand and repeated it for himself. We squeezed our hands together and paused.  
  
"Well, moment of truth luv"  
  
I closed my eyes wishing beyond hope that I wouldn't be the one destined for this life.  
  
Our hands parted and I took a deep breath.  
  
I looked down hoping that all I would see was red blood.  
  
My hand was encased with blood as black as the now dark sea.  
  
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A/N ok I'm sorry that this chapter was short and also sorry about the WAY OUT THERE fantasy! I also apologise for the different Jack but don't worry he will be back to his old self in the next chapter. I just needed this chappie to be really serious and it wouldn't have worked with a comedy Jack.  
  
Jack: "You've turned me into a blithering fool!! I don't act like that!"  
  
Me: "You'll act any damn way I want you to savvy? Anyway who the hell invited you to write in here?? This is my own special place to write to my reviewers"  
  
Jack: "Hehe...special place"  
  
Me: "Oh shut up your supposed to be an adult!"  
  
Oh by the way LiTtLe-SeRpEnT-gUaRd I will take your suggestion ... she will puke down someone just give me time! 


	5. A Life now Ordinary

Yay!!! Thank you for all the reviews I'm loving it!!!  
  
Disclaimer: nothing has changed ok?? I still don't own anything of POTC BUT when I grow up I intend to become an actress so maybe I could persuade them to make a third/fourth one which I could be in?? Well I might now OWN anything as such but I would be part of it...what do you think?  
  
Ok on with the next chappie!!!  
  
Chapter Five: A life now ordinary.  
  
The next day Jack was back to his old self; hands waving about in gesture, swaying all over the place, rum bottle in hand and the usual sense of humour.  
  
The week progressed quickly and before I knew it I had been on board the Black Pearl for a month. The crew had accepted me as one of them and the constant reminder that I was here to 'save the world' was somehow pushed to the back of my memory along with the death of my mother. The thought that something that important could be easily pushed away...or that was what I wanted to think.  
  
I was getting used to ropes and was learning new things everyday. Rum was now a favourite. The first time I had joined in on a drinking session was still reminded to me by laughing crew members.  
  
"Ere lass ave some o'this, s'great stuff," they had murmured to me.  
  
"Rum?" I giggled blushing like some naughty child. I was not yet of an age to drink...in my world. But what harm could one mug do me? After all they fed their children on it...probably.  
  
Five mugs later I was under the table completely out of it.  
  
I don't remember much of it but with the amount that they had told me I have a pretty good idea that I embarrassed myself. Luckily I have since gotten used to it and have given them no more excuses to laugh at me. In fact I was pretty good and on those days when rum was allowed onboard (obviously Jack didn't want drunk pirates even if he was) and had managed to out drink quite a few other members of the crew. They had all accepted me...everyone except Anamaria.  
  
She shot me dirty looks whenever I passed her by. She must have enjoyed the attention of being the only woman on board for so long but now it was me who was getting the eye by many men. I ignored them, not wanting the extra attention but there was a slight rebelliousness between Anamaria and me. She would try hard to get the men's attention when I was in sight to show that she could. I, however, didn't need to try...I was fighting them back! I laughed at her for her sour ways and felt pity on her for wanting the attention of old, desperate men.  
  
However there was one person whose attention she craved more than any other. Captain Jack Sparrow. She would flaunt about him like a lovesick puppy and it made me giggle. He had no eyes for her though. When she would put on the, what I can only describe as, oh-shag-me-please-Captain personality he would send her somewhere else and if that didn't work then he would go somewhere else.  
  
I'm not a bitter person but when this happened I would laugh for hours on end in a corner where no one could hear me. I had never liked her, even in the film when she had slapped Jack.  
  
However my new life was not all jokes and joys. At night-time the pressing silence of all but waves around me caused my mind to drift to unhappy thoughts. The responsibility of my new life and the death of my mother, which still haunted me, would frequently visit me during the small hours of the night. I missed her terribly but the thought I had lost something which I never thought would happen lead me to accept the new bizarre things in my new life.  
  
I was afraid of the Evil. It loomed over me whenever I was alone or in silence. Always there at the back of my mind ready to remind me of what would happen if I was to fail. But these thoughts were replaced by thoughts that Jack could do it. He was in the same situation as me with the world hanging on his shoulders. He didn't seem bothered by it and this comforted me. The fears left in me were shunned to the back of my mind, when the time came I would deal with it...not now. If I died then I died...I would join my mother. I repeated this to myself over and over again until I began to believe it. But deep in my heart I knew that this was not the case. I didn't want to die.  
  
Up on deck and below in the cabins, anywhere on board in fact, talk of the Evil was kept to a bare minimum and any who started talking about it was silenced by threat of having to swim with the 'fishies'.  
  
Generally life was good on board. It surprised me how the threat of the end of the world didn't seem to bother these people...these pirates, should I say.  
  
I stared out to sea on my watch. The waves lapped for miles and miles on end and the breeze whipped up my dreadlocking hair. The ship below me was slowly filling up with sleepy pirates. We were in need of docking to refill supplies of water and fresh fruit, either that or take one of the merchant ships sailing in these waters.  
  
I rubbed my eyes in tiredness and yawned. It was time to change watches but Anamaria, who was due up next, was nowhere to be seen.  
  
"Bloomin' girl" I mumbled under my breath. She always took her sweet time when watch changed between her and me. I sighed and changed my view to the upper deck where Gibbs was stood steering. Jack came swaying out of his cabin buttoning up his shirt as he went. I smiled to myself wondering how he ever found clean shirts in all that mess in his cabin.  
  
We shared a cabin. I had learnt this was the done thing to do on Fanfiction and so was hardly surprised when he said that it was where I would stay. However instead of sleeping in his bed I slept in a hammock, much to the dismay of the Captain. I had tried to keep it tidy but gave up after a few days, he was so messy! Shirts spraying out of dresser draws and a never ending supply of empty rum bottles.  
  
The sun was getting up stretching its arms and spreading its light and warmth over the crew. My eyes began to droop...I was so tired having kept watch for half the night.  
  
I shook my head to wake me up. Anamaria will be here soon, I told myself. Concentrate! The sun burnt into my eyes and caused me to shut them. Swirling lights of sleep threatened to take hold of me and the cry of a gull rose me from the light sleep that had nearly swept me away.  
  
I scanned the sea just encase a ship had crept up on us. Sea, sea, sea, sails, sea, sea...sails???  
  
I took a better look at it. It was sails!! A small merchant ship travelling on the west horizon. My guts squeezed...I knew what was coming.  
  
"SAILS!!!! SAILS ON THE WEST HORIZON" I screamed standing up.  
  
A mad rush of pirates ran to the starboard side to get a glimpse of the ship. Jack whipped out a telescope to get a better look.  
  
By the time I had reached the deck the ship was readying itself for a battle. Sharpshooters were climbing the rigging to secure their place while the cannons were being ran out and trained onto their target: the ever nearing merchant ship.  
  
Jack stood, cutlass in hand, ready to swipe the goods on board and kill any man who got in their way.  
  
I felt sick. Fear was running through my body and even the excited whoops of other crew members could not cheer me up. I could die for all I knew! Die to join my mother in heaven...which wouldn't be so bad...what was I thinking, I didn't want to die...I wasn't ready yet!  
  
We were gaining on the ship much faster than I had wished for and soon we were there...positioned at an angle so that their cannons would miss ours but ours would hit them. Fear pounded in my ears as the two captains faced each other.  
  
Captain Brush, the captain of the small merchant ship, came forward baring his cutlass...handle held out to Captain Jack in surrender. Our forces were greater than theirs and it was clear that they would loose if they came to any battle. I let out a deep sigh but kept hold of the handle of my make- do cutlass, which I was to keep until I could have one made specially for me, just in case.  
  
Jack took the cutlass and ordered all the other sailors on board to drop their weapons, which they did. Cotton and Gibbs went forward to collect them in brown sacks. After that we plundered the whole ship taking everything from the food and water to the very sheets off of their beds. We left them only enough food water to tide them over until they reached the next port.  
  
Next we pushed their cannons (which were of a pathetic strength compared to the ones we already had) overboard so as to prevent them coming after us once we had left. Un-tying the two ships we left them floating there with nothing but a bare minimum of supplies and sailed off laughing.  
  
My fears had left me and I felt a sense of overwhelming joy sweep over me as I attended the party up on deck later that day. Rum was being handed out like balloons at a child's party and everyone was rejoicing at the recent act of piracy. Food and water would no longer be going short and the silks and sugars found would trade for a good price.  
  
Ed and Vincent struck up a tune on fiddle and tin pipe while the crew ate and drank heartily. I took my share of the food and rum but then felt the prolonged heaviness of sleep settle itself on my eyelids once again. I drained my tankard and headed towards the cabin.  
  
I did not realise that I was being followed and got a shock as I stretched and found a pair of arms around my waist. I felt a head rest on my shoulder and smelt the rum and sent of Jack.  
  
"Ye firs' taste o'plunder luv" he slurred into my ear. I could feel him collapse onto my back and I helped swing him onto his bed. He lay there with his hand raised in the air, fingers sprayed out, in just the same way that he looked in the film when Will had found him in his cell.  
  
I took hold of his hand and tucked it under his blanket trying to put the idea that I was in a 'film' out of my head. He murmured some illegible words and tweaked his moustache in a sexy way that made me want to kiss it. But I resisted and climbed into my own hammock weary of the day's work.  
  
I stared at the ceiling and smiled to myself.  
  
"My first taste of plunder" I muttered with the smirk playing on my lips.  
  
Then I fell into a deep sleep full of food, rum, fine silks and battles.  
  
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A/N... please please review!!! Thank you all so much!! Gives out many cookies to her reviewers and watched as they gobble the up like hungry pirates 


	6. Port Royale

A/N: Yay I finally finished this chappie!!! Sorry for the delays I realise that I am posting new chappies late every time!! I'm right in the middle of exams so finding time to write can be a sticky business!!! Please review coz I love reading them!!!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own any POTC rights I am just stealing their characters to make up my own lovely story which seems to be weird! Damn I hate saying those things....Disclaimers SUCK!  
  
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Chapter six: Port Royal  
  
I woke up to find the cabin empty and the sun streaming in through the window. I sat bolt upright, which obviously made me fall head first out of the hammock. I rubbed my head in pain.  
  
"Ouch!" I muttered under my breath.  
  
Then I remembered the reason for my sudden fall...it was midday and I was still in bed...or hammock. I quickly threw on a change of clothes and tied the purple bandanna tighter around my head to tame my wild hair which hadn't seen a shampoo since I got here...much to my disgust!  
  
I ran up onto the deck ready to splutter out apologies to anyone who posed a threat to my late lie in. No one seemed to notice I was late and I sighed in relief preparing to start the jobs at hand. The deck was looking a state and the encrusted salt which had slowly built up on the side was beginning to turn a nasty shade of black. I sighed again pushing my blowing hair behind my ear.  
  
"Luv," came the familiar voice of our Captain.  
  
I froze, he must have realised about my late sleep in. Slowly I turned around, wincing. I'm doomed, I thought, last time someone slept in this late they were made to keep watch all night!  
  
But to my relief he was smiling at me and beckoned me up towards the helm. I stood next to him watching the way he kept a loose hand on the wheel but firmly guiding it towards its destination.  
  
"Late morning luv?" he chuckled at my scared look. "No worries, I know Anamaria short-handed you the other night. She'll pay the price" he nodded towards the dock where a disgruntled Anamaria was scrubbing hard at the crusty bits of salt which cornered the ship. "You missed a spot!" he called in a mocking tone which made him receive some nasty evil glares from the disgruntled Anamaria.  
  
He was laughing to himself then suddenly he fell silent.  
  
"She's a good pirate really, always there to help you out of a sticky mess" he said in a low voice.  
  
I stood there. Why did I have to listen to this? I hated Anamaria and Anamaria hated me...this he knew. So why did I want to hear about how good she was...unless...  
  
"Have you been drinking Jack?" I asked  
  
He shot a look at me as if to tell me off for being so rude. Then he built himself up slightly, pushing out his chest.  
  
"No, actually, I haven't" he said with some dignity although I could hear a slight tone of regret in his voice.  
  
"We're approaching Port Royal luv" he said with the great tone of distaste. "Its not so bad now the Commodore has left an all, but it still has his air about it"  
  
"The Commodore left?!" I asked.  
  
"Oh yes, he fled his little island abandoning it in its hour of need!" a triumphant grin spread wide across his face.  
  
"But why? He's not the sort of person to do that!" I was in total shock, in the film he seemed such a snob! No must stop thinking of it as a film! Real life girl!  
  
"Scared!" he broke out into laughter, wiping his eye he continued, "scared of the Evil! Can you believe it?"  
  
"Mmm" I muttered. I was scared shitless of the Evil and I was supposed to be defeating it! I looked to the floor and fidgeted with my hands. Jack looked at me curiously.  
  
"Whats up luv?"  
  
"Nothing"  
  
"Your not scared of the Evil are you?" he had hit the spot.  
  
"Me? NEVER!" I let out a fake laugh and left him at the helm.  
  
We were approaching Port Royal and chaos broke loose on deck. Apparently one of the hanging corpses of a pirate was a good friend of Gibbs and the poor man was having to be held back by the rest of the crew to stop him from jumping overboard to kill the 'murderous devils' as he put it.  
  
I couldn't bear to look at the corpses. I may well be a pirate now but I still wasn't used to dead bodies, especially when they were being pecked at by crows and torn into shreds.  
  
Instead I stared into the approaching port. It looked pretty much the same as it used to when the Commodore was living there. There were ships going in and out of it, some being stocked up others being emptied of goods. We harboured a little way off from the port in a bay just large enough to hide the Black Pearl.  
  
"Free to leave!" Jack shouted to the excited crew.  
  
Gibbs, who had somehow gotten loose from the crew's strong arms, had broken into a raging run towards the port. Anamaria and Jack legged behind him desperately trying to stop him before he did anything to put the crew in danger. I chuckled to myself. I was a fast runner, by far the best on board, but I rested ashore that they would catch him.  
  
Vincent, Cotton and Relan were to stay behind to keep watch of the ship while everyone else went their separate ways for the two days we were to be docked in Port Royal. However because this wasn't a pirate town we were dressed in 'respectable' clothes so as not to be spotted by the guards that still lingered in port. But security in the port appeared to be slack so our ship was unlikely to be noticed.  
  
I strolled into the town dressed like a man. It was either this or a large poofy dress which didn't appeal due to the muddy streets. My pistol was safety tucked under my shirt and out of sight.  
  
The street was bright and full of beggars trying to flog their produce to passing idiots. One woman was even trying to sell mouldy apples. This reminded me of one time when mum and I were in town and all we could hear were the crys of market men trying to sell their apples,  
  
"APPLES ERE!!! BRIGHT SHINY APPLES ONLY TWO POUND A DOZEN!!"  
  
Then the man next to him would say that his were only "ONE FIFTY A DOZEN" and so on until the apples were worth nothing.  
  
I smiled at this memory but soon my eyes began to sting again as more memories of mum came flooding back to me. I hadn't been alone properly since I had joined this strange but wonderful world.  
  
I entered 'The Swinging Daisy" which was the nearest tavern I could find. The bubble of excitement would drive my thoughts out of my head for sure. I ordered a Caribbean Rum and set myself at the farthest table so as not to draw any suspicions.  
  
The drink tasted good and it warmed my insides quickly. A young woman from the other side of the room shot me a cheeky smile and began to make her way over to me. Her red dress shrieked 'whore' to me and I realised I was dressed as a man.  
  
She approached me flaunting her stuff and tried desperately to sit on my lap.  
  
"What's a nice youn' lad like yourself doing in a dump like this eh?"  
  
I shuddered at the thought of her and tried to get myself out of this situation. But no words would escape my lips. I was frozen to the spot at the wrong time. She placed her arms around me and I shrunk away gasping at the extensive use of perfume.  
  
"Sorry luv he's already spoken for" Jack came onto the scene grinning from ear to ear, "Got a wife n' kids waiting for him at home, ain't ya lad?" he chuckled at me.  
  
"Aye" I mumbled, I hated being called a 'lad' as it were.  
  
But it worked and the whore totted off to find some other prey.  
  
Jack disappeared for a few minuets and re-joined me with a tankard full of rum. We sat in silence for a while both of us gulped down our drink.  
  
"Aaah that's better!" he murmured, "Thought I spotted you coming into here. Good place this! Always expect great rum at the Daisy"  
  
"And pleasurable company?" I asked jokingly.  
  
"Aye and that" he snorted into his mug. "Don't worry about Gibbs we made him see sense after we caught up with him" he said in answer to my questioning look.  
  
We both chuckled for a while and ordered in seconds. Jack stared at me and I smiled back at him briefly but changed my view to the bar to keep a lookout for any lurking guards. There were none there and I let out a happy sigh.  
  
I had the weirdest feeling that someone was looking at me, the hairs on the back of my neck were pricking up. It was Jack. He sat there staring at me. I began to feel shifty and wiggled in my seat.  
  
He still stared. He had a hazy look in his eyes. What was going on?  
  
I turned to him, "something up Jack?" I asked.  
  
He blinked as though having been woken from a dream.  
  
He opened his mouth to speak but at that moment a pack of guards came through the tavern door.  
  
Jack ducked down behind his tankard.  
  
"Damn," he muttered to me, "I know him"  
  
I got up downed my rum and stood in front of Jack.  
  
"What are you doing?" he hissed.  
  
I tutted and muttered for him to follow me. He quickly drained his tankard then hid behind my coat and we made for the door.  
  
"HALT!" one of the guards shouted at us. I threw my coat over Jack's head and ordered him to stoop.  
  
"We have had word that one Jack Sparrow is in port and have reason to believe you know his whereabouts"  
  
How could they know I knew? I'd only been in this blasted port for half an hour or so.  
  
"Not at all my good sir" I replies in my best voice, "now if you don't mind I've got to help my grandma home before it falls dark or my ma will be on my back."  
  
He frowned at me and proceeded towards Jack who was stooped low and completely covered in my coat.  
  
"Are you alright madam? Why do you wear your hood so low? Let me help you"  
  
"NO!" yelled Jack, "Argh!" he screamed quietly as I stamped on his foot, "I mean no thankyou young lad I'm quite alright! The sunlight burns my skin lad which is why I wear my hood so low"  
  
I had my hand over my mouth trying to muffle the sound of my laughter. Jack had spoken in a high-pitched what-would-be-woman voice which sounded more like a bird being strangled. I pushed Jack though the door before the man realised that there was no more sunlight to be had and we bolted down the nearest alley.  
  
I let out my laughter and slumped to the ground cackling loudly. Jack, however, seemed less pleased.  
  
"If you ever EVER tell anyone about that I swear I will gut you where you stand and feed your insides to the sharks!"  
  
I couldn't stop laughing and a fresh wave came over me as I looked up into the disgruntled face of Captain Jack Sparrow.  
  
"Oh cheer up I got you out didn't I?"  
  
He reluctantly nodded. But I still laughed.  
  
"You know your turning out to be more like Anamaria every day" he added with a smirk taking over his face.  
  
That stopped me laughing. I scowled.  
  
"Don't you ever EVER compare me to that woman savvy?" I reflected his own trademark back at him.  
  
He pulled me up and offered me a hand,  
  
"I won't if you won't tell anyone about the incident in the Daisy. Do we have an accord?"  
  
"Aye, agreed". A smile reappeared on my lips and we headed down the alley.  
  
I began to whistle the tune to 'A pirates life for me' and Jack joined in. Both of us were a little tipsy but in an extremely good mood.  
  
Suddenly Jack stopped in front of an old wooden door which had been patched up in many places.  
  
"Why stop here?" I questioned.  
  
"Why not luv?" he chuckled and added, "good friends of mine I'd like you to meet"  
  
He unclasped the bolt and threw open the door. 


	7. P' is for Pirate

A/N: Hello once again my wonderful reviewers!!! Hands out cookies fresh from the oven Mind ok they are still hot!! Don't want my reviewers burning their hands now do we? Lol. Ok so here is the lovely chapter seven! I realise I am writing this quite slowly but after next Friday I will have all the time to spare coz I finish my exams YAY!!!! And welcome rishbabi6 and metalbitch18 to the joyous realms of my story (as weird as it may be!).  
  
Discalimer: I am getting so sick of these!!! If I miss it out do you think they will mind??? What's that I hear you cry? "yes"? Poo. Ok Ok I don't own Jack or anything else about POTC. Happy now fanfiction administrator people????  
  
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Chapter seven: 'P' Is for Pirate:  
  
We entered into a darkened room filled with the occasional glint of a sword or a cutlass reflected as by the dying embers of a large fireplace. Jack strode in as though he knew the place well and a man appeared from a door situated at the back of the smithy holding an oil lamp.  
  
"Who are you and what do you want?" he asked into the gloomy room.  
  
"To kill ye all and steal ye rum!" came the chuckle reply of Jack Sparrow.  
  
"Jack?!" the man ran over to him clasping him by the hand and wringing it tightly. The two men embraced like brothers long-lost. It was then when I realised who this man might be.  
  
"Who's this young lad?" he asked motioning towards me.  
  
"This 'young lad' as you put it so kindly just so happens to be Annie...Annie Magpie, savvy?" he put the emphasis on the 'Magpie'.  
  
"Annie Magpie? You found her!" he sighed a deep relief and smiled heartily at me. "Will Turner at your service miss! Anything I can do, anything at all, just ask."  
  
"Well actually there is something you could do for the lass...you see she seems to be in need of a mighty fine cutlass. If you could be of a help..."  
  
"Of course!" Will broke in.  
  
I only half listened to their conversation. My insides had knotted when I heard Will's sudden excitement in having 'found me'. He was thinking that I would finally put an end to this Evil along with Jack. But I knew it was impossible, I couldn't even fight properly let alone defeat the thing which so many skilled men had failed to defeat. This happiness that I was bringing to Will was fake. He would end up disappointed.  
  
"Annie?" Jack's voice had broken my daydream.  
  
"Aye?" I answered trying to cover up my fear with a false smile.  
  
"Raise your hand luv" came his soothe voice. He knew what I was feeling, I could tell by the look in his eyes. Those deep brown chocolate eyes.  
  
I held out my arm and let Will measure it. His touch was soft even though his hands were bitterly callused with the blacksmith trade. Jack had settled himself on a nearby table and was admiring the swords on the wall.  
  
Suddenly the back door was thrown open and the blur of something small ran through it and bumped into Will's leg.  
  
"Mama says I gotsta go bed but I don't want to Daddy. Tell her I can meet the big people to Daddy!! She'll listen to you!" wailed the small child.  
  
"Lizzie its way past your bedtime!" Will complained but scooped the child up none the less and planted a kiss on her forehead lovingly. The child looked up at me and gave a whoop of joy.  
  
"Daddy gots people for Lizzie to play with!" she threw her arms up in the air and waved them about frantically.  
  
Just then a large Elizabeth came panting through the door with a brush in one hand and a small toy in the other.  
  
"Lizzie what have I told you your not to interfere in- Oh Jack its you!" she smiled at Jack.  
  
Jack rose from his place and bent low to the ground in mock bow. "Ah the lovely Miss Elizabeth! And I don't suppose you would have any of that lovely Caribbean Rum on you for a thirsty pirate on such a cold night such as this?"  
  
She rolled her eyes and disappeared into the back room only to appear moments later with a bottle full of the amber liquid that drove Jack mad. He snatched it up, giving his greatest thanks, and sat back down beginning the long drink ahead of him.  
  
"Aaah that's the stuff" we could hear him mumble beneath the bottle.  
  
Meanwhile Will had put the child down and whispered something into Elizabeth's ear. Elizabeth's face turned from happy to ecstatic. She ran over to me and took my hand in hers smiling with gratitude as if I had just give her a million pounds.  
  
I sat down and shook her off. My eyes were stinging which made me feel more unlike a pirate. Why did I have to be given this responsibility? Will was writing down some notes about the sword he was going to make for me. He rubbed his face and pushed back his own pirate mane. I pushed my thoughts away and began to wonder why he had never become a pirate himself when –  
  
"Hiya! I'm Lizzie! My Daddy's a blacksmith! Are you a pirate? Can you fight men too?" Lizzie had pulled herself onto my lap and was pounding me with questions the way that kids like to do.  
  
I placed a secure arm around her and felt a smile draw itself over my weary face. I liked young children and had a special way with them, or that is what my mum would say.  
  
"Hello Lizzie, I'm Annie!" I told her. She settled herself and started chatting away to me as if she had known me for years.  
  
"Lizzie!!" came the hot voice of Elizabeth, "what have I told you about interfering with Daddy's clients? I am so sorry Annie, she's three and has only just gotten into talking," she said apologetically to me trying to lift the squirming child from my lap.  
  
"No no that's fine! I love children!" I smiled up at her. She left us to it and in a matter of minuets I was laughing with all my body and both Lizzie and I were rolling about of the floor.  
  
A few hours had passed before Jack, who had silently been drinking the rum in the background, stood up and declared that we had to leave. Lizzie, who had long been asleep in my arms, stirred as I passed her over to Will. She looked so sweet sleeping, her face was creased into a smile as dreams of candy and laughter followed her. We thanked Will and Elizabeth greatly for their time – and in Jack's case for the whole bottle of rum that he had drank – and parted into the now pitch black street.  
  
I turned to see Jack whispering something into Will's ear before we began our return journey to the Pearl.  
  
"What was that you whispered to Will?" I asked as we drew near to the edge of town.  
  
"Nothin' nothin'" he winked to me. He was drunk, well half drunk anyway.  
  
We drew close to the Pearl and Jack suddenly stopped. I had walked onwards a few steps before realising I had left him behind. I turned to see him staring at me again. But this time I looked into his eyes and saw a man, not a fearless pirate, but a man just like any other. He walked up towards me and said in a sober voice,  
  
"I know what you felt in there luv,"  
  
I wanted to look at the floor but his eyes were drawing me towards him.  
  
"I saw the fear in your eyes, the look of responsibility and the look of impossible thoughts." The warmth of his chest drew near to mine and I felt comforted all of a sudden. "I know that's how ye felt because when I first found it out I felt the same. I didn't believe I could do it. To let down all those people and condem them all to death. But it comforts them, knowing there is some hope. And even if we can't defeat it...what im trying to say is...they won't feel doomed all the time if there is some hope..." He stopped and blinked a few times.  
  
Remembering who he was he stepped back into his usual character, "Don't you worry lass, I'll defeat the big bad, after all I'm Captain Jack Sparrow!"  
  
And with that he left. I stood there for a while mulling over what I had just heard. That was not like Jack Sparrow at all. This Evil must be driving everyone away from their real personalities. Jack Sparrow didn't act like he couldn't defeat it.  
  
I sighed, it had comforted me to hear his true feelings. Maybe he was just as scared as I was?  
  
Nah, he's Captain Jack Sparrow not afraid of anything! I shrugged off the thought.  
  
The next day I decided to spend on the Pearl. Things were different when half the crew were away getting shit-faced in bars. It was quiet and peaceful.  
  
I spent the day preparing a feast for tonight with Ed the cook. Well he was kind of the cook as well as the doctor. We decided that because the deck was now so clean, thanks to Anamaria, and it was such a glorious day that we would prepare it on deck.  
  
It was good to spend some time alone with Ed for a change. We were good friends and I had often hung around while he was preparing food for the evening meal on board. We had a good laugh and he showed me how to preserve the meats in salt for long sea journeys where they would usually go rotten. He hobbled around on his one good leg (the other had been taken off in some nasty battle) and gathered herbs from the shore. When he returned he bought with him a bunch of wild flowers which he held out for me.  
  
I spent the next hour winding them carefully into a crown wile he finished off preparing the food.  
  
"Tha's mighty clever!" he added once I had finished. I smiled at him and placed it on his head. He looked silly with a crown of flowers but he bowed and held out a hand as though he were a king and I acted along with him.  
  
The night came and all the crew joined us back on board the Pearl. They were all grinning as though they were carrying some great secret and we formed a circle on deck as the food was cooked over a fire which was made right in the middle of the Pearl.  
  
I stared at Jack, something was wrong...he was far too sober to be Jack Sparrow.  
  
Suddenly Will and Elizabeth appeared onto the ship, Will carrying a long package. The crew seemed to expect this and I frowned slightly.  
  
Will placed something into the fire and Jack called up a hush.  
  
"Tonight someone here is going to join our crew officially" the crew ooh'd and arr'd like an audience, "Of course this person is Annie Magpie!" the crew began to clap.  
  
I stared at Jack and the rest of the crew. What was going on?  
  
Jack came towards me and took me by the hand pulling me up. First she must sign the Articles!  
  
A wad of paper was whipped out and was read off. It was a pirate law book and included such things as 'Any man who commits mutiny will be punished by death' and 'He who lays a hand on a fellow crew member will end their row in duel and if this is un compatible then the punishment will be dealt with accordingly.' Once they had finished reading it I was made to sign. I looked down the long list of pirates who had signed it and noticed the messy scrawl of Jack's own handwriting. I took a quill and signed my name at the bottom of the long list.  
  
The crew clapped and cheered and I was reminded of a circus audience. I beamed at them all thinking that was it.  
  
But then Jack began to speak again.  
  
"Of course every pirate needs a weapon and seeing as she already has a pistol Will has made her a fine weapon!"  
  
Will came forwards and handed Jack the long package he had been carrying.  
  
Jack turned to me and offered the end. I pulled on the hilt to uncover a perfectly made blade that was just the right weight and size for me. I held it in my hand for a moment or two feeling it balance in harmony with my body.  
  
I turned to Will.  
  
"Oh its...beautiful. How can I ever..."  
  
But Jack cut in with a pained look in his face.  
  
"Well, luv, you don't want to be thanking us quite yet" he had started to go shifty, "You see after they started branding us we kind of took to it and...ah" he trailed off.  
  
Oh no! What had I gotten myself into? Will reached into the fire with a look of disgust in his eyes. He handed the ember hot poker to Jack and stepped away. I turned to run but bumped into Gibbs who was standing right behind me. He grabbed me and turned me around hoisting up my sleeve at the same time.  
  
There was a moments silence as the crew stared at my tattoo of the Magpie but then Jack came towards me holding out that white hot poker. I struggled trying desperately to get free but Vincent came and joined in holding me down.  
  
"It doesn't hurt that much"  
  
"You'll be one of us" the crew murmured.  
  
Great! I was getting myself into one of those cults where they enjoy burning great big scars into your flesh. Trust me eh?  
  
They had such a tight hold of me that I could barely move. Jack advanced on me with the poker.  
  
"I'm sorry luv...I really am"  
  
He plunged the poker onto my skin and I screamed in agony. It was ripping through my flesh sending up clouds of steam. The crew was gasping and the poker taken away. I was let free.  
  
The pain throbbed uncontrollably and I clenched my fist to punch the first thing I could lay my hands on...Jack's face. He fell to the floor complaining and whining while I squeezed my wrist in agony.  
  
"Geezuz, bloody hell, flaming pirates!!" I shouted collapsing to the floor.  
  
Elizabeth ran to me and plunged my hand into a bucket of freezing cold water. It instantly felt a little better and I gasped for breath. The crew broke into applause and the rum was finally handed out to them.  
  
Half an hour later I removed my wrist from the bucket, puffed and swollen, and Elizabeth wrapped it in a special cloth warning me not to remove it for at least a week. I nodded and the couple said their goodbyes to everyone. I thanked Will but he wouldn't look at me properly, he was still embarrassed because it was he who had supplied the poker.  
  
Gradually the deck cleared and soon only Jack and I were left on the deck. I hadn't spoken to him since he had barbarically torn into my flesh with a red hot poker.  
  
I felt his warmth beside me and he took my hand gently touching the bandages covering my new 'P'.  
  
"I'm sorry luv" he started but I snatched my hand away and got up to leave.  
  
"Luv!" he started as I ran down the stairs.  
  
When he joined me in the cabin I pretended to be asleep and he eventually collapsed onto his mattress.  
  
I clutched at my wrist in agony as it throbbed beneath the bandages. But beneath all the pain, all those feelings of hatred towards those who had hurt me and hidden right in the centre of my heart was a warm fuzzy feeling. I had finally been accepted as a pirate and the 'P' on my arm now proved it.  
  
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A/N: Ok I also have to admit that kinda stole the tattoo burning from Harry Potter with the death eaters tatoo's burning but its not exactly the same!!! 


	8. Norrington

A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews!!! I love reading them!!! So neway I finally got chappie eight done!! I'm trying to make it more 'normal' coz I know its an extremely abnormal story. Unfortunately that is my style of writing! I have another story that I havn't posted on Fanfic coz it is really TO weird...it's a cross between Pirates of the Caribbean and Peter Pan!! Lol. Hehehe ok so anyway you want the chappie...here it is!!  
  
Disclaimer: Read whatever I put for chapter 7!  
  
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Chapter eight: Norrington.  
  
The week passed in a flurry of pain and sea mist. The bandages on my wrist began by digging into my burnt arm but as the week had progressed they began to soothe it. The day when I could remove them and show the world my new pirate life made the hairs on my body stand up in excitement. Attempts to remove it early had been prohibited by the ship's doctor (or the person trained slightly in medicine) Ed. His idea of medicine was to slice off any limb that looks slightly wounded, not my idea of fun at all!  
  
I had given Jack the silent treatment for a few days but had finally decided to forgive him for his harsh idea of fun one night while some of the crew were playing cards.  
  
I was watching them with glee as Gibbs piled up his worldly goods with a hand that wouldn't win the one piece of eight. Cotton, who was also playing, was keeping his money low even though he had a hand which could, and would, win the game.  
  
I was laughing away while drinking my share of the rum which was circling us. Then Jack appeared. There was a flurry of hands and tankards until all the rum was hidden. Gibbs began to hum in a look-at-me-I-was-drinking- rum sort of way although he was trying to hide the fact. I giggled again but suppressed my laughter as the Captain approached me. Why was it that he could drink rum while the crew were forbidden to touch it unless given permission to? Ah yes that was it, Jack wanted it all for himself. Greedy bugger!  
  
I turned away from him, I was still moody with the whole you-burnt-my-arm sinario.  
  
"A word if you please luv"  
  
I got up moodily, to let him see that I still had not forgiven him, and followed him up onto the deck. We stood in the moonlight under the starry sky and he frowned at me.  
  
"Now I know you didn't like it when I burnt your armsies but I am Captain here and we can't have a member of the crew ignoring me can we?"  
  
I stared at him with a look in my eyes that plainly told him I was not in for all this 'I am Captain my word is God' bullshit.  
  
"And...I think I'll go mad if you don't talk to me soon!"  
  
I laughed at the puppy dog look in his eyes.  
  
"I never asked to come along you know!" I giggled, "You can drop me off in the next port and go fight the Evil by yourself!"  
  
We both fell silent and I changed my glance out onto the ever-darkening horizon. The Evil...why the hell did I have to bring him up?  
  
"That's not what I meant," came the whisper in my ear, "I just miss your company is all"  
  
I felt his warm arms on mine and continued to stare out to sea. His chin rested on my shoulder and I glanced at his face. The light from the stars and the moon reflected down on us as if it were protecting us.  
  
"We're going there aren't we?" I said after a few moments.  
  
"Aye," came his voice, "Aye, soon luv"  
  
The day had finally come. Bandages off!! I woke in the morning to a smiling face peering over the hammock. I jumped out, nearly falling over, and threw on a clean shirt over my undergarments.  
  
We raced onto the deck and into the bath of sunlight which awaited us. I sat on the side with Jack crouched in front of me.  
  
He smiled up at me and gently took my wrist into his hands.  
  
"This is it luv, you ready?"  
  
I nodded my head and we both chuckled. He took the corner of the bandage that I had tugged at many times over the last week and began to unravel it.  
  
As the layers got thinner the black bandage began to show white again. Finally we reached the last wrap. I took a deep breath and Jack took it off.  
  
Staring up at me was a perfectly shaped 'P' just under my tattoo. I ran my hand over the now fully-healed skin and smiled a smile as long as a banana. Jack shared the same look and held it up for the crew to see.  
  
They burst into applause and I was startled at the way that a simple 'P' scolded into the flesh meant so much to the pirates.  
  
The celebrations lasted momentarily, however, as a scream from Anamaria up in the crows nest alerted everyone's attention.  
  
"SAILS ON THE EAST HORIZON!!!" there was a pause and then "ROYAL NAVY!!! IT'S THE NAVY CAP'N!!"  
  
The crew snapped into action running here and there readying the guns and sweeps. I drew out my new cutlass and watched the blade glimmer violently as it caught the sunlight.  
  
Our sharpshooters and sweeps were trained on the enemy our black flag hammering in the wind. We were ready, we could take them, I wasn't afraid.  
  
My insides squirmed uncomfortably as the massive structure of the Dauntless shadowed our Pearl. Why did we have to stand our ground and fight a hopeless battle?  
  
Jack stood his ground. Both hands lay upon his hips; his feet spread an equal distance from his shoulders. The sunlight caught his good looking features and the wind whipped up his long dreadlocks giving him a heart throbbing look.  
  
The Dauntless grew nearer but as it drew closer it was apparent that they were under armed as only one level of cannons were trained on us but they still posed a threat. Norrington stood at the helm shouting out orders with that pinch faced look on him. He didn't look as though he belonged on the sea. Unlike Jack his powdered wig blew so that it was off-centre causing him to have to replace it every five seconds.  
  
The fear within me drained and was replaced by something else. Anger. I felt a rush of hatred towards them as their ship grew nearer. They were delaying us from saving their sorry hinds and the rest of the world. The grip on my cutlass grew stronger and I readied myself to kill.  
  
"FIRE!" Norrington shouted pointing his finger to our ship as though his crew didn't know where they were firing to. But they were one half a second too late for Jack had unleashed his crew moments before.  
  
Cannon fire filled my ears and the flying cannonballs filled my sight. My anger grew. If they stopped us now I'd make the dirty buggers pay.  
  
We boarded and I came into contact with my first victim. He lunged at me but I dodged and swung my sword over my head bringing it down to collide with his sandy coloured hair. He fell to the ground blood spilling from his head. There was no time to look at the man I had just killed as another threw himself at me.  
  
I ran to the next redcoat after leaving the last in a bloody heap on the floor. The anger pounded in my ears as I killed person after person. The blood on my new cutlass glimmered red in the midday sun.  
  
I approached two of them. They stood back to back defending each other but one of them spotted me and both turned onto me. Two...could I take them? No time to think just time to kill. One swung his sword over his head while the other swept below aiming for my knees. Which one to defend? No time. I swung my sword up and blocked the head attack but there was no time to stop the other and I shut my eyes ready for the blow. I opened my eyes seconds later wondering why it had delayed. The man was laying dead a shot hole through his head. I turned to see Jack standing with his pistol in hand pointed at the now dead man.  
  
I smiled at him in thanks but turned to the other man who had stood up from the strong defence blow I had struck him. I put my whole weight behind the hilt of my cutlass and plunged it into his heart feeling the ripping of muscle through my hands. He fell to the deck dead.  
  
The battle around me was raging in the same way. We were strong, there was no doubt of that, but the more people we seemed to kill the more people appeared from down below. The deck of the Dauntless was soaked in blood but still the rage pumped from within me.  
  
I took a quick look around to see where Jack had gotten to. He was up by the helm in man to man combat with Norrington. It was clear who was winning and I turned my back on it smiling. Good old Jack.  
  
Another redcoat approached me and I was in battle again. He swept his sword here and there and every time I reflected the blow back onto him. I sliced through his arm but he backed up causing only a light cut then it was his turn. His sword caught me unawares and cut a long graze through over my stomach. I blinked but forgot the pain as I drove my cutlass through his heart as I had done with the other redcoat. I glanced down at my 'graze' to see that my shirt was covered in blood. It didn't hurt too badly and I tried to forget the sting.  
  
"Damn it! That was clean on this morning" I muttered while approaching the next enemy.  
  
I had weakened and even though I always won I was getting more and more 'grazes'. My arm had a nasty tic taken out of it and my leg had a gash which was bleeding freely.  
  
I glanced around our crew quickly to see that it was not only me who had injuries. Then I spotted Ed sitting on the ground surrounded by five redcoats. I rushed over to help him and killed one outright from behind. The others turned to me and bared their teeth in anger and for a fleeting moment I was reminded of the time mum had taken me to the zoo to see the lions. The memory of mum made my concentration waver and I felt my cutlass fly out of my hand and onto the deck. I was weaponless and surrounded by four redcoats. I tried to dodge to pick up my weapon but a sword at my neck made me stop. I flung myself to the deck to dodge it and bought my knee up in between the man's legs. He fell to the floor writhing in agony.  
  
"That's what we call the get-off-me-you-loony back at home" I said with a triumphant grin on my face but not for long.  
  
The sound of a close by gunshot rang in my ears and a sudden eruption of pain exploded in my chest. The three men turned and left me slumped on the ground bleeding.  
  
I clutched at where the pain was coming from and looked down to see blood trickling down and making a pool on the floor. I felt suddenly extremely light headed and looked up into the battle. It was ending and I saw two Jacks deal two final blows to two Norringtons and then the two Norringtons fall to the floor. My vision had doubled and the sound around me had ceased. I tried to concentrate on the faces of our crew. They were cheering, their faces lit up with glee so why couldn't I hear it?  
  
Black spots begun to flicker in front of me and images of mum burst from my memory. I could see her in the delivery room screaming as the baby tried to burst from her. I heard the beep beep beep of the breathing machine and the final drone. She was dead. Then something strange happened, a blue mist surrounded her and she was disappearing. It was the image I had never seen before. My mum dying.  
  
I blinked my eyes trying desperately to stay in conscious and saw Jack running over to me. He placed both hands on my shoulders and I could see his mouth moving as though he was trying to talk to me. But I couldn't hear.  
  
I could feel my body giving up on me and I could no longer feel the pain. I remember staring into Jack's scarred face and smiling at him.  
  
I shut my eyes and passed into darkness. 


	9. Fever

A/N: Hehehe I know the unwritten law of POTC...the main character has to get hurt. However there is a purpose of her getting hurt...its not just one of those random things as you will find out in this chappie! Hope you guys are all enjoying this story coz I really love writing it!! By the way just to warn you guys next Saturday I'm going on holiday for three weeks!! I know this is a long time but I promise I am going to finish this story coz I already have the ending all mapped out and its really good (or so I think!)  
  
Disclaimer: Nope I don't own POTC...I only own my dear little Annie who isn't very well at the moment!!  
  
On with the story!  
  
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Chapter nine: Fever.  
  
I don't know how long I lay in the darkness. I was unaware of what was happening around me and it seemed as though time and matter no longer existed. Strange colours and mists whirled in the darkness ahead of me and I found myself running through the blackness chasing the colours.  
  
The further I ran the further away they went. Where was I?  
  
I felt nothing, not the mist on my face nor the heat or cold. My head felt swimming and I couldn't concentrate.  
  
I saw a face in front of me. A face I recognised. It was my mother. Was I dead?  
  
come to me she whispered, come and join me   
  
There was a large black building in front of me but my limbs felt heavy. I couldn't run away from it. It was dragging me closer and closer and no matter how much I tried I could not stop growing closer to it.  
  
I saw faces, the building had gone, scared faces. They were crying. Will and Elizabeth were holding onto each other and their little girl was hidden within them.  
  
The building was in front of me again. I was closer and I could just make out a figure standing by a window.  
  
"Any change Cap'n?" came a familiar voice closeby.  
  
"No, no not yet" came the whisper of another.  
  
They sounded desperate but I could only just hear them. My hearing was blocked with the sound of sudden wind and lightning of a terrible storm.  
  
"She's got a terrible fever, you must have some rest...Jack?"  
  
He didn't answer. The voices were getting clearer but I had no idea where they were and who they were talking about. Or who they were.  
  
I was back at the building being pulled up the path. I kept seeing flashes behind me where the voices were coming from but I couldn't concentrate.  
  
"Come on Annie...please wake up. Your going to get through this, I promise"  
  
The man sounded as though close to tears. I wanted to help him, whoever he was but the building was in sight again.  
  
I was so close, the door was right in front of me. If I just held out a hand I could go through and find out why I was here. But something held me back. The voice of this man, he wanted me to wake up. Why would he want me to wake up?  
  
Was I asleep?  
  
The building disappeared and I was back with the swirling mists. The colours were spinning and I was feeling sick. Feeling...I could feel again! Someone was holding my hand, but who? I looked down at my hand to find nothing in it. Then there was the voice again.  
  
"Please, come on luv. It's an order ok? Wake up!"  
  
There was a face through the mist. Dark chocolate brown eyes, a red bandanna, braids sewn into dreadlocks.  
  
The mist was lightening and a room swirled into view accompanied by a sharp pain in my chest and a thumping head.  
  
The man caught my eye and realised I was awake. It was as though a fire had erupted in his eyes for a look of such glee came over his face.  
  
"Annie! Annie your awake!" he smiled and I saw what looked like a tear form in his eye.  
  
I frowned at him. Who was Annie? And more to the point who was he? And where was I? Questions flooded my mind and caused my already painful head to erupt with a fresh wave of pain.  
  
I shut my eyes tightly and wished it all away. My head was foggy and I couldn't remember who I was. Fear gripped me...who was I?  
  
The man, who was stroking my hair, also had a fearful look in his eyes and he yelled over his shoulder for a man called Ed.  
  
He ran through the door and I saw a fleet of faces peering through the door anxiously. I was in a panic now and tried to move although it caused my body to erupt in agony.  
  
"How long has she been awake Jack?" he said to the other man.  
  
"A few minutes...she...she doesn't seem to know who she is...or who I am..." he trailed off.  
  
"Sorry Captain but you'll have to leave"  
  
"Leave?! No, I'm Captain Jack Sparrow and this is my cabin savvy?" he sounded lost and confused just as I was.  
  
"It would be better if you did Cap'n" he said in a soothing voice, "She'll be safe with me, I swear."  
  
The man reluctantly turned to leave but just before he left he turned to me and whispered,  
  
"Don't worry luv, Ed'll take care of yea"  
  
'Ed' turned to me and lay a hand on my forehead. I was sweating all over but I was afraid of this man. Who was he? And who was I? I began to panic again.  
  
"It's ok. Your name is Annie. Do you remember?" the man said in a soothing voice.  
  
I began to shake my head but had to stop because my neck felt too stiff.  
  
"Well Annie my name...my name is Ed" his voice had begun to break up but he coughed and tried to talk in a would-be-cool voice. "We're good friends and you came to save me in a battle," I noticed a large bandage wrapped around his middle, "You...you got shot. That was a few weeks ago. Jack hasn't left your side. You have a fever and it would seem that you have lost your memory. But only temporarily you sleep it off there's a good lass." He trailed off as his voice was breaking up again.  
  
I lay there trying to make sense of what he had just told me. A battle? Shot? It made my head want to explode.  
  
"Here drink this" the man helped pour some liquid down my throat and being as I did not want to upset the man anymore I drank it. "It will help you to sleep."  
  
The liquid ran down my neck and soaked the pillow I was laying on but as soon as I had drank a few mouthfuls he picked up his stuff and left the room.  
  
I lay and listened to the voices outside.  
  
"Well? How is she?"  
  
"She...she's not good cap'n. The fever rested on her head and she has lost all memory of who she is and where she is"  
  
"But she'll get it back right? She'll survive?"  
  
There was a pause,  
  
"It doesn't look good cap'n. I wouldn't rely on either"  
  
After that I dozed into an uneasy sleep.  
  
Hours later I awoke to find the Captain slumped into a sleep of his own on the bed. Half his body was sat in the chair, which had been pulled up, and the other was lay on the bed cloths next to me. He was holding my hand.  
  
I stared at the ceiling and tried to remember who I was. My head was less hazy now and I had time to think. Slowly things began to come back to me. My name, where I was, pirates. Everything slowly filtered into my mind and there was a great weight taken off my shoulders. I twitched my hand slightly which woke the sleeping man.  
  
He stared up at me and the fire I had seen in his eyes sparked again but then it dimmed when the realisation that I had no idea who I was was remembered.  
  
Instead he took hold of my hand and smiled at me in hopes I would remember. But I had already remembered. I swallowed hard and whispered a single word,  
  
"Jack?"  
  
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A/N: Ok so it wasn't very long and I apologise for the cheesy ending! Please review I love to read them!!! Until the next update (which should be soon coz I've finished school now!) Hands out cookies to her wonderful reviewers enjoy! 


	10. Recovering

A/N: Ok so I wrote this quite quickly coz I was in the mood to write! Don't worry I will try to update quite a lot this week before I go on holiday so u guys have something to read while I'm away!! BTW I also have to apologise for the cheesiness of the beginning of this chapter...I was in a bit of a cheesy style of writing if u get my meaning!  
  
Disclaimer: Nope not a sausage...but sausages are nice which is nice I guess.  
  
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Chapter ten: Recovering  
  
It was as though time had stopped altogether. He slowly looked up from his hands, to which he had been staring at, and looked at me as though daring to believe.  
  
"Sorry luv, say it again?" he breathed with a smile creeping over his face.  
  
"Jack?" I said slightly stronger this time.  
  
"Say it again"  
  
"Jack"  
  
He released his tense face into a wide smile and stood up, beads jangling, and ran outside yelling at the top of his voice,  
  
"She's back!! She's back!! Do you hear what I'm sayin Gibbs? She's remembered!"  
  
I smiled as I heard him chuckling and running about and then everyone seemed to burst through the door cramming inside the small, and already untidy, cabin.  
  
That night seemed to be a cause for celebration and everyone could be heard drinking and signing a hearty round of 'Yo ho yo ho a pirates life for me.' Rum was dealt out as though it would never go short and soon the whole crew was drunk.  
  
Everyone except for me that is. I was still ill and they had failed to notice, they had only realised that I would still be alive and be able to fight good old Big Bad. They had been ordered by Ed to leave me to get some peace. Jack had objected to this at first claming that he was Captain Jack Sparrow but finally he gave in and joined the party up on deck.  
  
I lay in my bed feeling terribly ill and slightly jealous that I was not joining in with the celebrations upstairs. The thought of rum was comforting but the thought of food made me want to throw up. Sleep would not take me so I lay mulling over the things that had happened since the battle. I looked down to where the shot had wounded me. It was carefully wrapped in a bandage which looked as though it had been changed recently. Someone had dressed me in clean clothes and I had another bandage wrapped around the sword wound on my belly. I had obviously been well cared for by Ed.  
  
Suddenly the door creaked open. I tried to snap my eyes shut to pretend that I was doing what I had been ordered to do and was sleeping but it was too late, the member of crew knew I was awake. I waited until my eyes cleared and then gasped at who had just entered the cabin.  
  
Anamaria came over to my bed and went to sit down, then thought better of it and stood up. She took in a deep breath and flicked her hair slightly. She was the only member of the crew who had not come to see me or start to rejoice over the matter. I didn't expect her to, I thought she might come and tell me she was disappointed that I hadn't died instead. And obviously I was right. But when she opened her mouth she had an apologetic look in her eyes.  
  
"Annie...I...I wanted to say that I'm sorry for how I have behaved since yea have joined us," she stopped and I looked at her in complete disbelief, "The truth is...I didn't believe that you were the Magpie we were looking for but these last few weeks..." she stopped again trying to find the right words.  
  
"You know Jack hasn't left your side? He's never done that before and the crew was getting' worried about him. He even...went off his rum" she said in a low whisper.  
  
I stared at her. Jack went off his rum?!?! Surely not! She was lying!!! But then again...why would anyone lie about such a serious matter?  
  
"I know! Believe me we thought the world was going to end! Jack has drunk rum every single day I've known him. So I knew there was somethin' special bout ya."  
  
"Wish I wasn't the Magpie though" I whispered, more to myself than to her.  
  
"What?" she enquired.  
  
"Nothin'" said I.  
  
Suddenly the door opened and in came Jack swaying dangerously and smelling richly of far too much rum.  
  
"Sup luvs?" he slurred, "Ed said we wer' t' leave er' t' rest".  
  
"Aye cap'n" Anamaria stood up, "That means you too though"  
  
"I'm goin' ta bed' luv" he grinned, hiccuping slightly as he slurred it, then he approached the hammock which I usually slept in. Slowly he tried to pull himself into it but fell to the floor.  
  
Anamaria, seeing that I certainly couldn't help him, approached the captain who was waving his arms about trying to get up. She tugged on his arm and threw him into the hammock despite his protests that he was Captain Jack Sparrow and did not need help.  
  
Finally, Jack snuggled and snoring loudly in the hammock, Anamaria left the room. I was left to entertain myself until the sounds of the loud snores decreased.  
  
It took about two hours until the snores stopped and I rolled over to embrace the sleep I so desperately wanted. It came, cold and harsh.  
  
The building was there again and I took the same path up to the door being pulled slowly even though every fibre of my being wanted to prevent it. I was stood at the door again and it flung open to reveal a large hallway with a grand stairway covered in cobwebs and dust. I was being pulled up them and to the left. Suddenly a noise behind me, the creak of a stair, made me wake screaming.  
  
I sat up in bed panting with sweat soaking the pillow. Jack came rushing in from the outside.  
  
"What is it luv??" he said looking worried.  
  
"Nothing" I looked away from him desperately trying to remember the dream.  
  
That day I was left in bed again but nearer the late afternoon I felt stronger and desperately wanted to get out into the sea mist which I missed so dearly. Slowly I pulled myself out of bed and staggered to my feet. The shot wound stung but I ignored it and approached the door.  
  
The sunlight fell on my face warming it to the bone. A sea mist whipped up in my face and I took a deep breath in savouring the moment. The sky was cloudless and such a deep colour of blue that I thought it was more beautiful than the sea. But only for one fleeting moment, the sea was where I belonged now. I could never go back to living on land. It wasn't exciting enough.  
  
I staggered over to the side and it was then that my presence was noticed. Gibbs ran up to me and put an arm on my shoulder as though I was going to faint any second.  
  
"Annie you should be in bed. Ed...ED!"  
  
"No I'm fine. You don't need to-" I was too late. Ed, Jack and the rest of the crew were looking at me as though I could die from being out of bed.  
  
They all prodded and poked me until I was sick to death of it.  
  
"FOR CRYING OUT LOUD IM BLOODY FINE NOW LEAVE ME ALONE!!" I yelled. At this they all backed off as though I had frightened them. I settled on the side of the ship and then noticed Jack was still standing beside me.  
  
He was grinning, as always.  
  
"Not one to be pampered are yea luv?" he chuckled.  
  
"No, I most certainly am not" I joined in his chuckle and he settled himself beside me.  
  
"Missed the sea have ya?" he said while staring at the horizon.  
  
"Aye. Don't know how I coped not living on it before," I said while I also stared at the horizon.  
  
"So where did yea live before?" he frowned at me.  
  
I gulped remembering that he still did not know my past.  
  
"Jack...uh...Cap'n" I corrected myself smiling at his smirk, "If I asked you about your past you wouldn't tell me would ya?"  
  
I had got him. I knew his answer would be no.  
  
"Exactly. What's behind me is behind me...if ya get me drift?" I smiled at him  
  
"Aye I know what your on about luv"  
  
We chuckled some more and until he was called back to the helm. I sat alone holding onto a near by rope for support and gazed out at the sea. Jack puzzled me. He was supposed to be this un-caring non hero pirate who cared of nothing but himself and rum. But this wasn't true, well the rum bit was. I had seen a different side to him. A caring and worried side. If I had written this as though it was a story in a Fanfiction the reviewers would have told me off for portraying him all wrong. I chuckled at this thought but reminded myself that I wasn't supposed to see this as a film. It was real life and I was here experiencing it.  
  
My mind wandered to the black house and the moment in which my mother had died that I had seen during my fever. A sad feeling filled me; I missed my mum so much. All my life I had been with her and now for the first time in my whole life I had been apart from her longer than I had ever been. This would get larger and larger until, I hoped, I would finally forget about her and get on with my new life...that is if I defeat the Big Bad and live to tell the tale.  
  
Life was complicated.  
  
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A/N: Please review!! 


	11. Bad News

A/N: I just thought I'd say a special thankyou to Blackcat69 and VagrantCandy coz you guys are reviewing lots and im sooooooo thankful to you!!! So Thankyou!!! Hands out cookies   
  
Disclaimer: Once again I DON'T OWN POTC!!! Maybe one day when I am old and very very rich I will buy Disney and finally own POTC but that day has not yet come so I will sit here and plan my taking-over Disney for now.  
  
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Chapter eleven: Bad news.  
  
The next day I was right as rain again and back to my duties onboard the Pearl. Jack said it was the 'mighty healing powers of the sea' which had got me back on my feet so quickly where as Ed insisted that it was his 'mighty healing powers' which had done it. Either one I was happy to be back on my feet. My duties were finished in double quick time and I found myself itching for more. So I decided to help Anamaria swab the decks.  
  
The heat from the sun and the spray of the sea mist made an equal balance in temperature and I began to sing a round of 'Yo ho yo ho a pirates life for me. Anamaria soon joined in and we began mopping the floor in tune. Of course Jack began to hum the tune and soon the whole crew were in an uproar.  
  
"We're rascals and scoundrels, we're villains and knaves, Drink up me 'earties, yo ho, We're devils and black sheep and REALLY BAD EGGS!!"  
  
As the verses went on we became louder and louder. I swear that if a ship was on the furthest horizon they would have heard our singing. Finally it came to an end and everyone collapsed laughing on the decks. Except for Jack of course who was trying desperately to keep them on course.  
  
With the deck shining cleaner than it had ever been before we retired below deck for a light lunch.  
  
"Been having fun?" It was Ed. He wasn't up on deck at the time we had been singing as he was having to treat another member of the crew with a nasty gash they had obtained while drawing the sails in earlier that morning.  
  
"Aye!" I replied heartily, "bit of a sore throat now though!"  
  
"I'm sure you have!" he chuckled, "look I need to check your wound so pop by the later aye?"  
  
I sighed, "honestly Ed its fine!" but he insisted and I thought it best to just get it over and done with. "Ok ok fine!"  
  
I was true to my word, even though I wasn't keen on being prodded and poked again, and turned up at his cabin later on that day. However when I opened the door it was not Ed but Jack who was standing there. I peered around to see where Ed was.  
  
"No its just me and you luv" came Jack's voice.  
  
"Oh, huh?" I was confused.  
  
"I needed to talk to you where I knew no one else could hear and I gathered that because everyone keeps well away from the doctors area this was the best place to go. I organised it with Ed." He smiled cheekily as though we were naughty students who had gotten out of a class.  
  
"Oh alright" I said sitting down on the bloodstained table. I ran my fingers over the dents and scratches where desperate patients had clawed their fingers into it in agony and where the knife had slipped into the table. "What did you want to talk about?"  
  
He became suddenly serious and sat beside me clasping his hands together, then unclasping them and waving them around in a more Jack Sparrow manor.  
  
"You know we've been sailing towards...It...for the last week," he said finally, "And all the while the crew have been blissfully unaware. They all think we are sailing towards Tortuga for one last time."  
  
I sat there in silence for a few moments not believing my ears. I also thought we were sailing towards Tortuga to collect provisions and have one final laugh. But now the realisation that we could be only days away from our death suddenly sunk in. Although I had hid my fear up until now underneath I had had to block it out of my mind. The very thought of it sent my whole body into a sweat of fear. I didn't believe I could defeat it. Not really.  
  
"Luv?" I heard Jack whisper to me. I looked up into his face brushing away my tears.  
  
"Jack... I'm scared," I said finally revealing my true feelings about the impossible task ahead. He looked at me with pity and for a moment I almost thought he would say that he, too, was as afraid as I was. But the true Jack Sparrow would never admit to something like that.  
  
"I know you are luv, but don't worry I'll be there all the time. After all we're the Sparrow and the Magpie aye?" he chuckled. I looked at him and frowned.  
  
"How can you take this as a joke?" I questioned, "We're going to die and disappoint the whole of your world plus condemn them all to death!" I clasped my head in my hands and tried desperately to hold back the threatening tears.  
  
"My world?" he answered after a while. I gulped. I hadn't meant to say that, it was my world now this was where I lived. "What do you mean 'my world'? Its just as much yours as it is mine...isn't it?"  
  
I couldn't bare it. I had totally landed myself in it and the last thing I wanted to do was to lie to Jack. There was silence for a few moments but I could feel his eyes on me burning right through me looking for an answer.  
  
I lifted my head from my hands and stood up. I couldn't tell him the truth. He would think I was mad.  
  
Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Neither of us moved. The knock came again along with a "Cap'n?"  
  
"Aye?" Jack said reluctantly turning his piercing gaze from me to the door.  
  
The door opened and Ed stepped in. I didn't wait to find out what he wanted with Jack and just legged it out of the door.  
  
I ran straight up onto the deck. It was nighttime now and the stars had come out. They dotted the sky like a thousand fireflies trapped in a small jar. As I leant on the side of the ship a light breeze came and swept my hair to the side cooling me from the humid atmosphere of below decks.  
  
I looked out across the silent sea, everything was so peaceful. The deck was deserted except for the light snores coming from John who was fast asleep in the crows nest even though he was supposed to be on watch. I couldn't believe that we were nearly there. Nearly at the great peril that awaited us. Nearly at our death.  
  
Well one good thing would come of it...I could see my mother again. But what if I don't? What if this world has a different heaven from my world? "What if I never see her again?" I said out loud.  
  
"See who again luv?" Jack had snuck up behind me and was leaning next to me.  
  
"My mother," I didn't think it would matter, after all it could mean something different entirely like I'd never go home to see her in Tortuga because I might die.  
  
"Your mother?"  
  
"Aye," I breathed, "You know she loved starry nights. She used to look up at them and we'd name them silly names like Jimmy Boy Jim Bob," I stopped and gulped, the last thing I wanted to do was to start crying in front of Jack.  
  
I could feel Jack's eyes on me so I turned away from the sea and stared into the crows nest instead trying desperately to clear my mind from my old life.  
  
"John's fallen asleep," I muttered giving a loud and completely fake laugh.  
  
"Luv I..." Jack started but I cut him off.  
  
"I should go and wake him, we could be nearly under attack for all we know!" and I quickly climbed up the rigging calling out John's name so that anything Jack was trying to tell me was completely unheard.  
  
"JOHN!" I yelled in the poor man's ears. He shot bolt upright banging his head on the mast and causing him to yelp in pain.  
  
"Aye?" he said sleepily, then realising he was supposed to be on watch he said, "I wasn't asleep I swear! Jus'...jus'..." I could see his eyes searching for an excuse, "Jus' resting me eyes is all!" he finally settled on.  
  
I smiled at him and his pathetic excuse and backed down the rigging.  
  
Suddenly, out of nowhere, I could feel a mad prickling sensation on the back of my neck, which sent shiver after shiver down my spine.  
  
I reached the bottom of the rigging and stared in wonder. It was as though everything had stopped dead in its tracks. No breeze swept my hair. No wave rocked the boat. And no ripple glazed on top of the black sea.  
  
I looked over to where Jack was standing but he was crouched on the floor covering his ears. I soon found out why. A terrible screeching noise like fingernails on a blackboard rang shrill through the air.  
  
I crawled towards Jack crouching beside him with terror lined on my face. What was happening??  
  
I looked into the sky and stopped dead. One by one the stars were going out.  
  
Slowly we were being plunged into darkness.  
  
The lanterns flickered and glowed black before being completely extinguished by an invisible wind.  
  
The moon, once so large and yellow, was darkening like a dying flame until it vanished completely forcing us into the blackest night I had ever experienced before in my whole life. No shapes or shadows loomed as there was no light to see. I almost wondered if I had gone blind.  
  
No sound of waves or birds could I hear. The only thing preventing me from thinking I was dead was the light breathing of Jack somewhere by my side. I tried to ask what was happening but no voice escaped from my lips.  
  
Suddenly my right wrist became a fury of pain as though someone had ripped the skin from the bone and jabbed a million needles in its place.  
  
On my right wrist where my tattoo of a Magpie lay. 


	12. Norrington Again?

Disclaimer: I don't own POTC...how many more times do I have to say it????  
  
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Chapter 12: Norrington again?  
  
The immense darkness engulfed us taking with it all manor of sound and feel. The air turned a deathly cold and it seemed like my body froze.  
  
I do not remember passing out or ever loosing conciseness at all but all of a sudden it was as though someone had turned on the lights. Heat, sound and movement was welcomed finally by my body as though it had been a lost friend for many years.  
  
I sighed a relief. But then I noticed something. Something very very wrong.  
  
I was no longer crouching on the Black Pearl. Instead I was lying under some palm trees and on top of hot sand.  
  
I jumped up and froze. Where was I?  
  
"Jack?" I called, no answer, "JACK!" still he did not answer but surely enough I was lying on a beach the sea spread out before me.  
  
Jumping up I ran along the sands searching everywhere for signs of the Black Pearl or any other crew members. The sand scorched my bare feet but I did not care. I was only worried about where the hell I was!  
  
After half an hour of searching I slumped in a heap on the sands hugging my knees. I was stuck on an island. A tiny island at that with no sign of where I was or what I was doing there and, worst of all, no sign of the Black Pearl or and of the crew.  
  
What was I going to do? And what was that thing that made everything go...dead. And how the bloody hell did I get here?!?!?  
  
Great, I thought, I'm back to square one! Confused! My head was swimming so I tried to switch my mind to think of other things...I was getting quite good at that now.  
  
So with the wonders of how to get off the island and find the Black Pearl shoved firmly in the back of my mind I began to think of clouds. There was one really close to me which looked like a huge dog. I giggled slightly. And there was another which looked like a bottle of rum. I could do with some rum now.  
  
One by one I looked at the different clouds until I reached the ones on the far horizon.  
  
"Hey look that one looks like a ship!" I said to myself. Hang on...it is a ship!  
  
"A ship!! A ship!!" I laughed jumping up and down in the air like an excited child.  
  
Got to catch their attention. I ran up into the trees and pulled down a few palm leaves. Desperately I grabbed two sticks, which just so happened to be leaning on the white sand oh so coincidentally, and tried to make a fire.  
  
Ten minuets later, my hands bleeding something terribly due to the sticks which kept slipping out of my fingers and delving themselves into my palms, I waved about the two now lit palm leaves.  
  
"I'M OVER HERE!" I yelled even though I knew they wouldn't be able to hear me.  
  
I breeze suddenly swept up and threw my hair over my shoulders cooling me down from the hot sun. At first, like an idiot, I welcomed it. That was until I realised that it had put my palm leaves out.  
  
"Oh bloody hell no!" I cried shaking them as if they would magically re- light. No luck. Instead the embers just went flying about scattering the beach with glowing orange bits.  
  
However, much to my utmost delight, I noticed that the ship was coming straight for me! I began to dance around the beach again thankful that I was going to be saved.  
  
The rowboat slowly pulled up on the beach and I ran towards it...only to stop dead in my tracks and run the other way.  
  
"HALT!" came the posh voice of a man from the boat.  
  
I could feel a gun pointing at me, don't ask me how I just could. Dreadingly I turned around slowly to come face to face with a whole rowboat full of redcoats.  
  
"Goddamn it!" I muttered, "why does it always have to happen to me...?"  
  
I trailed off and stood frozen to the spot at the next man who stepped out of the rowboat. It was Norrington. How? Norrington was dead I saw Jack kill him with my own eyes! My eyes must have given away my confusion because he stepped up towards me and asked,  
  
"Anything wrong Miss Magpie?"  
  
I stared in disbelief. Was I dead? Did I somehow get to the land of the spirits? Or did Norrington just have a twin?  
  
"James Norrington?" I asked to make sure that it wasn't a long lost twin.  
  
His face contorted with anger, "How dare you call me by my first name you common pirate!"  
  
"Well I was just checking you weren't like a long lost twin," I said simply but he still seemed angry, "Look I saw Jack kill you!" I asked, the question was burning my mind.  
  
"Yes and I shot you right through the chest but still I find you alive and well...unfortunately," he mumbled as an afterthought.  
  
"You were the one who shot me?"  
  
"Yes and a damn good shot it was too, just a shame it did not kill you."  
  
"Well your nice aren't you?" I said sarcastically.  
  
"You can act how you like for you shall be swinging in a few days," he smiled with a triumphant grin.  
  
I returned his grin, which he must have found unnerving as his quickly faded, and said, "Ok then James I will act how I like."  
  
He shuddered and shot me with a thousand evils but I didn't care. I just smiled at him.  
  
Swords and guns were brandished towards my neck as I clambered into the rowing boat. There was no way I was going to escape; after all I was on a tiny island with no way to get off it outnumbered 25 to 1.  
  
As the crew rowed back to the now fully repaired Dauntless I hum the tune to 'A pirates life for me' in time with the sound of the oars. This greatly irritated Norrington much to my delight.  
  
"If you don't shut up I'll have you shot."  
  
"If you have me shot you won't have a glorious hanging," I counter attacked.  
  
I had got him; he would never jeopardise a good old public hanging.  
  
Thirty minutes later I found myself nice and comfy in one of the Dauntless's cells. The sound of the sea was loud as the cell's were at the bottom of the ship. However seeing as I loved the sound of the sea this was just an added bonus.  
  
However I was left to mull over my thoughts. Didn't Norrington know I was here to save his sorry ass? Then why was he going to have me swing for...hmm what is he having me swing for?  
  
I stared around the cell. The walls were mouldy and the floor was one inch think with water. Great I was to get a wet bum! A rat ran past screeching as it headed for higher ground.  
  
"Lucky basterd!" I muttered to the rat as it disappeared under the door crack.  
  
Just then I saw a light from underneath the door a Norrington emerged from the corridor accompanied by a look of shear triumph.  
  
"Well aren't I privileged? The man himself turns up to see if I'm comfy!" I said folding my arms and sitting in the inch deep water.  
  
The commodore sneered as he saw me sitting in the water but I merely smiled and splashed it about a bit.  
  
"Just come to make sure you can't escape," he said fixing an extra padlock in place over the bars.  
  
"Oh no worries about that...I dread to think what I will find on your boat,"  
  
He left without another word.  
  
"Sitting in a cell, things aren't going well, really hate the smell, dum de do de dell," I began to sing. It would seem that within a few moments of me being shut up by myself boredom was already taking hold.  
  
Seconds turned into minuites.  
  
Minutes turned into hours.  
  
Hours turned into days.  
  
Two days later, when my song had developed into a three hundred and sixty nine verse and chorus song, the door opened once again to reveal the triumphant grin of Norrington.  
  
"Hello old mate I was wondering what had happened to yea!" I said happily even though I was starving hungry and had a terrible headache not to mention the immense confusion going through my head.  
  
He smiled, much to my confusion. "Nothing could possibly dampen my spirits today Miss Magpie for today is the day you die."  
  
"Ah morbid curiosity has grasped you again like a school child," I said but on the inside I was petrified. I didn't want to die but I didn't want him to see my fear either.  
  
Two burly looking men came forwards and opened the cell grabbing my arms at the same time. I eyed my effects as I was pulled out of the room I had become so familiar to. They were hanging limply on a hook by the door. If only I could reach them.  
  
"Ah yes Gillette kindly take Miss Magpie's effects and throw them overboard...I'm sure she will not need them," he said with an evil glare.  
  
My insides crushed again at the thought of my beautifully carved cutlass being thrown to Davy Jones Locker but I had no time to worry about it as the two men began to pull me out and into the sunshine where my face welcomed the heat and feel of the sea mist once again.  
  
I looked around me. We were back at Port Royale but it looked much different. Trees were knocked down, buildings were half collapsed and animals walked around unprotected by cages or fencing. It looked as though something had destroyed it completely!  
  
"Wha...?" I asked trailing off as I took in more and more of the devastation that had ruined the once beautiful town.  
  
One of the men holding onto my arm looked at me, "It was a terrible storm last night taking us all by surprise. It...went dark," he said remembering, "and cold, it felt like everything stopped..." he trailed off and turned away looking at the destroyed town which was once his home.  
  
People were running around searching for their lost possessions and calling out the names of their children many weeping in despair.  
  
"It was the Evil," said the man on the other side of me.  
  
"Nonsence the thing does not exist! Twas just a storm," said the other sharply.  
  
They began to argue across me about whether it existed or not that I switched off and looked at the wreckage around me but suddenly the mention of my name bought me crashing back to their conversation.  
  
"This is the Magpie??? Well how the hell can we kill her?!?!?" the man was trying to tug me away out of the clutches of the other man but the man was keeping a tight grip.  
  
"Are you mad? We'd get hung! She dies like the rest of those damned pirates!"  
  
My arm was beginning to hurt and I was pulled back and forwards like I was on a rack.  
  
"Men!" I whipped my head around to come face to face with Gillette who was, thankfully, still holding my effects in his hands. "Fighting will only cause her to get away, hand her over before you loose her and your own lives!"  
  
He quickly snapped a pair of arms over my wrists and dragged me off the ship and into one of the only remaining houses. Inside was what looked like make shift jail cell.  
  
"That's it!" I said loudly, "I want to know what the hell is going and I refuse to die before I know!" I attempted to fold my arms and look stern but failed as the chains around my wrists meant I had hardly any movement in my arms.  
  
"Shhh!" whispered Gillette. He sat me down on a pile of straw (which was the only possible chair form there was) and leant close to my ear so that no possible person could hear. "We're going to get you out."  
  
I looked at him my eyes wide in surprise. He was going to help me?  
  
"Your our only way to stay alive...to defeat that...thing," he seemed to have trouble saying the words. "My...my wife she...she was killed in one of these freak storm things we have been having. I don't want my children to have to die in the same way."  
  
His face looked pained as though he hadn't slept for weeks and it was then I realised that, even though we were pirates, Jack and I were the only hope that many people had to survive. The weight on my shoulders doubled as I saw the last flicker of hope glimmer in his eyes.  
  
"How come Norrington...?" I asked trying to change the subject.  
  
"Doesn't believe?" I nodded, "you know what he's like. He won't believe anything unless he can see it and touch it. He returned to Port Royale last week. He seemed to think that he had never been away and deserted us."  
  
Suddenly the cry of what sounded like a seagull came whistling through the window interrupting our conversation.  
  
"That's the signal," Gillette said as he quickly removed the iron bars from my arms and pushed me out the door.  
  
"Signal?" I began but I soon found out. A man dressed in a navy uniform, who had given the call, grabbed hold of my arm and ran with me down to the docks.  
  
"And Miss Magpie?" it was Gillette calling from behind me, "good luck!" he threw me my effects and disappeared inside the hut again.  
  
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A/N: Lol ok so I know you all wanted them to go and meet the Evil thingy now but I wasn't ready to finish this story yet!!!! I think this chappie was awful!! I'm really sorry about it, I was going to re write it but I have to go and pack for Saturday. I will try soooo hard to write another chappie before I go but I can't promise!! Just please tell me you guys will all wait for me to come back?? You'll all be here to review when I start writing again???  
  
For any of you that didn't understand the 'storm' thing it was sent by the Evil dude (just to show you that he is powerful!) and the reason why Annie was moved will be explained later on.  
  
So please go and review!!! 


	13. The Four Symptoms

A/N: Ok so I am back from the BEST HOLIDAY I HAVE EVERY HAD! I'm not kidding if I could have had a flight home in October I would have never left (ok so I know your all thinking that I wouldn't have been allowed to stay in the Hotel that long but I would have taken my friend's suggestion and slept on the beach!). I'm really missing all my friends out there so if this chapter is a bit moody then I apologise in advance!  
  
Disclaimer: Yes I finally got the papers signed!!! I own Disney!!...ok ok I'm lying and I know you all know it but it was a fun fantasy while it lasted!  
  
Sorry for the wait but here is the next chapter.  
  
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Chapter 13: The Four Symptoms.  
  
The rowboat swayed gently from side to side as I lay hidden in under an old blanket.  
  
"Not long now," came the whisper of my companion who was rowing me out to Tortuga.  
  
It had been three days since Gillette had helped me to escape Norrington and my sticky death. Three days of lying in a rowboat unable to move until we were out of 'enemy' waters. Three days of learning about what was happening in the rest of the world by the whispers of Toby.  
  
Norrington had been in hiding for weeks afraid of the 'freak storms'. But of course he was much too sensible to believe that some 'Evil' thing, predicted by a PIRATE woman, could be true. So abandoning his people when they needed him the most to protect them he scarpered from the Caribbean and found a temporary home in England with the false impression that he was there to 'save his King'.  
  
This story had bought a smile to my face as the thought of Norrington so afraid that he had to go and find someone to protect him was highly amusing.  
  
But the thoughts of Jack and the Pearl still lay heavy in my mind. I did not have a clue as to where I would find him and if I would find him at all. For all I knew he could have died in that...storm. However I managed to push that thought out of my mind. Not only would I be loosing my best friend and be left completely alone again but it would also lie on me to 'save the world'. Great.  
  
Suddenly I felt solid land underneath the boat and Toby smiled to me.  
  
"We are here Miss Magpie...uh...Annie," he corrected himself. We had argued long into the nights on what he was to call me. 'Miss Magpie' was not appealing.  
  
"And here would be...?" I said sitting up and regarding the land before me. It looked like a peaceful island but as I searched the land with my eyes I could not find any sign of civilisation through the forest.  
  
"Well Annie, if you walk south from this point for...lets say about an hour...you will reach Tortuga."  
  
My eyes popped. "How the hell do you know about Tortuga!?"  
  
"Oh all the navy knows about it. Even Norrington but he..." he trailed off chuckling slightly.  
  
"Yes?" I asked when he did not finish.  
  
"He's afraid to attack it in case he finds the pirates defeat him!"  
  
We laughed. And I don't just mean a slight chuckle or giggle but a full- hearted, rolling around on the floor, couldn't breath, increasing tummy ache with every gasp of breath laugh!  
  
"Norrington...afraid...pirates...defeat...!!" I managed to say as the laughter burst from the deepest pits of my stomach. It was as though I was laughing at every funny thing that had ever happened was making me laugh once more.  
  
But then I did something stupid. I fell into the freezing cold water and completely soaked myself including my hair. Toby laughed harder but I stood up holding a clump of material in my hand in disgust.  
  
"Goddamn it!"  
  
My mood surprised even me. One minute I was as happy as ever and the next I felt ready to slice someone's head off. Shooting the dirtiest look I could at Toby I turned and waded to the beach.  
  
"I'm sorry Miss," he said truthfully but that only made me worse.  
  
"Sorry!? How can you be sorry! Your not the one who is SOAKED!" I grabbed my cutlass and stormed off into the forest in the direction of Tortuga without another word and left him speechless on the beach.  
  
I don't know why I left in such a hurry but as I got ten minutes into my walk I realised that I had never even said a thank you. The guy had risked his life to get me out of there alive and I had only bitten his head off. Why had I gotten so angry? It was only a bit of water and due to the hot Caribbean sun my clothes were already bone dry. So why?  
  
Suddenly I felt cold and from out of nowhere tears began to spring up on my face. My stomach churned and the same feelings I felt when my mother died came flooding back to me and filled every fibre in my body. It was as though my feelings had been delayed up till this point and only6 now were finding their way to me.  
  
I collapsed to the ground as my body shook with sadness. Every sad thought I had ever had in my whole life, every regret, every embarrassment, everything I had ever done wrong flashed through my mind like trailers at a cinema. It seemed to go on forever, it was never ending, forever roaring through my body like a steam train going ten...no one hundred times faster than normal.  
  
And then suddenly it all stopped. It was as though someone had switched it all off inside my head. Like a game that had lost its entertainment factor.  
  
What was going on? 


	14. Tortuga again

A/N: Ok so to make up for the fact that I have been away I decided to write this chappie quite quickly. But I may end up changing it because I think its terrible! So please review and tell me if I should re-do this chapter ok? Thanx!  
  
Disclaimer: I've done this too many times now, just see chapters 1-13 and you will gather that I DON'T OWN POTC!  
  
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Chapter 14: Tortuga again.  
  
I woke up and stretched out shutting my eyes from the sunlight which was managing to pierce my eyelids even when they were closed.  
  
"Oh yawny yawny yawn..." I sang to myself as I began to wake up my legs and arms with my lengthening stretch.  
  
I heard someone giggling and sat bolt upright in my bed. Where the hell was I?!  
  
It looked like the room of an Inn but it was filled with fruits, breads and flowers. My eyes widened as I looked around the piles of goods until they rested on the small figure of toddler who had made the laugh that had bought me to my senses.  
  
"Benjamin what have I told you! You are NOT to come in...Oh my!" a thin woman with a tatty brown bandana tied around her head had entered the room, "Miss..." she breathed stooping into a low bow.  
  
WHAT...THE...HELL? I froze wanting to back away to the wall.  
  
"I am terribly sorry Miss!" she began but stopped and just stared at me.  
  
I twitched and looked down at myself to see if maybe there was something wrong with me. But I appeared normal.  
  
"Look...I...um..." I started but I was lost for words. What the hell was going on?  
  
The child turned and toddled out of the room snatching up a banana as he went which was unnoticed by his mother who still stood staring at me her jaw slightly open. It was greatly annoying me.  
  
"What is your problem?" I finally asked a little too haughtily. She immediately hung her head low and let out a thousand apologies.  
  
At this time a man entered the room. He was elderly looking with white hair covering most of his body.  
  
"Ebony?" he asked the woman gently. When she didn't answer he put his hand on her arm and gently pulled her out of the room. Seconds later he returned and shut the door behind him.  
  
"I am sorry about my daughter but she has been through a lot these last few days," he said sitting down beside me on the bed, "She is a little excited to see you and she only means well." He turned to me and studied me for a few moments before answering some much needed questions.  
  
"We found you last night in the forest and bought you home. And then we found out who you were and I realised what had happened to you."  
  
My face turned from shock to puzzlement.  
  
"The four symptoms?" he said as though asking me if I had heard of it. Obviously I had never heard of it before in my life so my face did not change from that of puzzlement.  
  
"Surely you know of what you are to go through?" it was now his turn to be shocked as I shook my head. "When the Sparrow and the Magpie were prophesised she said you would experience the four symptoms the week before the Evil...or you...were defeated."  
  
"And these four symptoms would be...?"  
  
"Fear, joy, anger and sadness."  
  
And it clicked. Fear...that was when the blackout came back on the Pearl when I woke up on the island. Joy...when I was on the rowboat with Toby. Anger...when I fell in the water and Sadness...when I collapsed in the forest.  
  
"So all this is for a reason?" I said to myself more than him.  
  
He nodded. I needed to be alone. No I needed to get out of here and find Jack. After all...I only had one week left until either it or us died.  
  
I stood up abruptly startling the poor man who almost jumped out of his skin.  
  
"I'm sorry but I have to go. Thank you so much for helping me. One day I will repay you for your kindness." I gabbled quickly turning for the door.  
  
"Your leaving? But all your gifts...you must take them," he said motioning to the masses of goods around me.  
  
"M...my gifts?" he nodded. Gifts? I hadn't done anything to deserve gifts. Least not yet anyway.  
  
"Then I give them all to you as a thanks for saving my life," I smiled to him trying to seem happy but turned once more towards the door.  
  
"Thank you! Thankyou! Thankyou!" was all I could hear from behind me as I left the Inn.  
  
Sure enough I found myself in the middle of a street which looked much like the 'civilised' end of Tortuga. Not that any part of Tortuga could really be called 'civilised' but this was the area where the residents lived.  
  
I slowly made my way down to the docks picking the most brightest and friendliest looking streets I could. The last thing I needed was to find myself in a dark alley. As I got further and further towards the docks the streets turned from small market stalls to drunk pirates brawling outside of dirty looking taverns.  
  
I began to find my bearings and made for Jack's usual tavern. We had visited Tortuga many times since I had arrived and I was used to the woman who hung around on street corners, the drunk men slouched or passed out in doorways, and the men who found that being drunk meant they could kill as many people as they liked during the night and completely forget about it all the next day.  
  
Life in Tortuga was every Pirate's dream for rum was never short.  
  
Entering the tavern I made my way through the crowds and leaned heavily on the bar.  
  
"Jim?" I yelled in the direction of the old man who stood behind the bar serving as many of the pirates as he could. "JIM!"  
  
He looked up from the rum he was pouring and noticed me at once.  
  
"Polly, be a luv an' watch th' bar will ya'?" he asked to a young girl who had just emerged from the back of the bar. The poor girl had a look of shear terror on her pale face and she trembled as she approached the glaring men.  
  
Usually I wouldn't have let the poor girl serve these men on her own but mine was a matter of urgency. Jim motioned me into the back room and closed the door behind us.  
  
"Wha' are yea doin' here?" he asked, his own round face turning pale as fear gripped his heart.  
  
"Um...long story. Look I need to find Jack...and quickly," I sat down and explained to him what had happened and how I had lost Jack and the Pearl and that I only had one week left until...  
  
"I havn' seen Jack since...well since yeh two last came here,"  
  
I gulped. I was kinda hoping that he would have said, "Ah yes he's staying here,"...wishful thinking Annie!  
  
"But..." he trailed off thinking.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Well there is a man oo' might know...bu'...well e's not tha' most co operative person"  
  
"Where can I find this man?" I asked. I was willing to try anything anything to find Jack.  
  
"No you really shudn' mess with im...maybe it's a bad idea." He looked nervous, his eyebrows scrunched in the middle of his forehead.  
  
"I have no choice, I have to find Jack, and you know it."  
  
He sighed heavily and rubbed his forehead with his hand as though wiping away some imaginary sweat.  
  
"Folk call 'im Dagger, no one knows 'is real name." He stood up and moved to the knarled looking desk in the corner of the room and extracted a piece of paper and a feather pen. He wrote something down on it and reluctantly handed it to me.  
  
I looked down to see an address scrawled onto the paper.  
  
"Go there n' ask for 'im. But make sure yea take yeh cutlass, n...n protect yehself aye?"  
  
I smiled at him, "Don't worry...I'm Annie Magpie savvy?" 


	15. The Fortune Teller

A/N: Heya all!! Wow I'm soooo sorry about the late update!! I've been so busy that I haven't had time to sit down and write! But fear not for I am back!! And this story will one day have an ending!!

Disclaimer: Right, like I'd bother writing fanfictions if I owned Disney!!

Please PLEASE read and review!!!

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Chapter 15: The fortune Teller

"29...28? No wait that must be 30...hmm," I picked my way down the street trying desperately to follow the directions Jim had given me.

Go to house 31 on this street, take the left next to it and carry on until you reach a dark passageway with a door of black wood.

_Knock thrice._

How is anyone supposed to be able to follow those directions?

"Oh for god's sake where the hell is house 31?" I said out loud startling a kid who sat nearby on the floor playing with a handful of dirt.

"That way," came a small voice. I looked around me, but there was no one except for the kid and me. Then I realised I was being silly; it was the kid who had said it.

"Cheers mate," I smiled to him but as soon as I said it he darted into the nearest house trying to avoid me. "Right then 'take the left next to it'," I muttered to myself glaring down the small alley that led away from the street I was on.

I followed the alley and found a door with a black knocker. Knock, knock, knock.

The door swung open and I invited myself in, one hand resting firmly on my cutlass to show I was in total awareness.

It was too dark in the room to see anything and I began to regret letting myself in...maybe I should go back outside. But the door was already shut. My mind flittered back to Home when I used to stay up late watching scary movies. Creaking floorboards, strange noises in the night, and worst of all a scary someone at the end of it all!

Tip-toeing further forwards I remembered that I was supposed to be a pirate who wasn't afraid of anything. "Yeah right," I muttered. Suddenly I could hear voices. They sounded angry, urgent, and maybe even desperate.

"What do you mean? Of course you should know where she is and god help me I will get it out of you," one of the voices said angrily.

"I told you I don't know now get out of here before I slice you open!" the other spat back.

"Predicting the future for yourself again?" the other counter attacked back. It was like a war of words.

Suddenly my heart gave an odd leap...the first man had said, "You should know where she is". What if it was Jack? Jack trying to find me??

I gave no hesitation and burst into the room.

Two men stood in front of me and I suddenly felt a fool. Neither of them was Jack. I should have known that the voice didn't sound anything like him. Had it have been any other occasion I would have blushed but I had to keep up my appearance of 'fearsome pirate'.

Hand rested threatingly on the hilt of my cutlass so they could see I said,

"I need a word, now" the last bit I added in to show I really was being serious.

To my annoyance the man on the left began to laugh, "A woman? Haha! A woman thinks she can threaten me!"

Anger rushed through my body slowly filling each and every muscle of my body so they shook. But then the strangest thing happened. I blinked my eyes and when they opened I had the man who laughed pinned against the wall with the blade of my cutlass almost piercing his throat, and his cutlass, which I hadn't even noticed he had, was resting in my other hand. The other man lay unconscious on the floor.

The man underneath my blade was trembling from head to toe. But he was not the only one who was afraid. How did I do that? I scanned the room in a moment but no other living soul was present. I had done it.

The tattoo on my wrist was tingling and I finally understood. Somehow I had used some of the power Jack was talking about. Feeling relieved and secretly excited I got back to terrorising the man.

"You are Dagger?" I whispered angrily loving every minute of it.

The man nodded silently taking a big swallow.

"Not very scary are you?" I chuckled at my own joke, Jim would have a field day if he knew what I had done. "I am told you know the wear abouts of some people?"

He nodded again, sweat of fear trickling from his forehead onto my gleaming blade.

"How?"

He took another gulp and whispered hoarsely, "I see them, I...I...predict,"

I looked at him hard. He can tell the future? A fortune teller? I released the tightness of the blade on his neck so he could breath a little.

"Where is Jack Sparrow?" I said calmly, pronouncing every word slowly and clearly as though he was thick.

He squirmed a little and I tightened my grip again.

"I...I need...my..." he motioned to the stick lying in the corner.

I gave him another hard look, "Don't try anything stupid savvy?" I said in the most dangerous voice yet as I let him go.

Staggering over to the stick which lay in the corner he picked it up and sat cross legged on the floor, eyeing me as though I was going to kill him.

It fell silent and I stood for about a minute as the man shut his eyes whilst grasping the stick with both hands. I took a moment, while he was busy, to glance at the man I had knocked out. He looked as though he would survive, maybe he had only hit his head on the table. I should have felt bad. After all he did me no harm but, and maybe my pirate instincts were coming out, I felt a kind of exhilaration from it.

The man had finished and he looked at me nervously as I observed my prey.

"Yes?" I enquired as though I was getting bored.

"He...he.."

"Oh stop stuttering man!" I was getting annoyed again.

"He will be arriving in Tortuga port tomorrow morning," he said so quickly that I almost missed it.

Tomorrow? I felt relief spread through my body. I would be back with Jack tomorrow. I smiled then, remembering where I was, decided to give him a threatening goodbye instead of "Cheers mate, see ya later then!"

"You tell anyone about this and I swear..." I didn't even need to finish.

"Don't you worry Miss...ah...pirate...no one will know...never...you have my word," he was clearly petrified out of his mind.

I smiled evily, "good."

And with that I left the poor man to get over his terrifying encounter with a fearsome pirate...me!

Strolling back out into the sunlight, and replacing my cutlass in it's sheath, I strode down the road with my head held high. I was feared, I was powerful, and I was going to get Jack back.

Life, for the moment, was good.


	16. Rain

A/N: Ok so this was quite a quick update as an apology for my lateness in the last chapter!! I know your all looking forward to the arrival of Jack again so I will be short with my little note! I just wanted to thank my reviewers so much for...well reviewing!!! If it hadn't been for you egging me on I would have never got this far! Thankyou all!!!

I'll miss out the disclaimer, you all know the drill by now anyway, on with the show!!

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**Chapter 16: Rain**

The morning dawned cold and stormy. Sheets of rain hit the windows of the Inn creating a similar noise to that of a brass band. Wind howled in the trees and whistled around the building. Great...the unpredictable weather changes of the Caribbean were kicking in.

However nothing could darken my mood. I felt like my head was up above the clouds where the sun was shining. I was finally going to meet back up with Jack and the Pearl. I would be a loner no more.

I half ran half skipped down into the kitchen where Jim stood absent minded polishing a beer mug with an old cloth. He had been dead impressed when I told him the tale of how I had ferociously almost cut the poor man's throat. He became almost a little afraid of me until I reassured him that I would never threaten him, well not unless he did something I was against that is. He had given a nervous smile at the last bit, not knowing whether to take it seriously as a joke.

"I'm gunna miss havn' you aroun'," he muttered.

I smiled at him, "Don't worry I'll be back later to pick up m' things!"

The weather outside was enough to drown an elephant but I strolled out into it none the less, my head held high. By the time I reached the harbour I was soaked to the bone, my hair hanging in rat's tails around my shoulders. But I was still in the good high spirited mood that I had been in since I heard the news that I was going to be re-united with Jack at long last.

A stray seagull cried out above my head before being swept out and lost in the vast blackness of the sea. My eye's scanned the surrounding boats trying vainly to spot the deep black wood which was the Pearl. I couldn't see it...not yet anyway.

There were few people around the harbour and those that were near were running as fast as they could into the closest Inn or Tavern trying to find a dry spot. Its amazing, I thought to myself, how people suddenly become sober at a bit of water.

Of course Tortuga doesn't have a harbour master, no one cares who is entering or leaving the town or how long they stay for, so soon I was left all by myself with only the last few stragglers running into shops or houses.

"Come on Jack," I muttered again scanning the sea once more.

I was getting a little uncomfortable. When you can feel that your knickers are as soaked as if you'd just jumped into the sea you begin realise that you're a bit on the wet side.

The minutes ticked by about as fast as a mime artist on a London street corner. I was beginning to loose my excitement, only managing to retain it as I forced myself to believe that the fortune teller had told it so.

What if he had been lying? What is he didn't really know the answer so told me a phoney one so I'd leave him alone?? What if he couldn't tell the fortune at all??? Questions and worry's streaked through my mind and I stood gazing out at the bleak sea whilst it roared turned like an aggravated lion.

"Come on!" I urged at the turning waves pleading that the next time they rolled over they would produce a black speck of a ship....The Black Pearl.

My teeth chattered violently but I ignored them desperately telling myself that "They'll be here in a minute...any minute now."

But nothing came. No black ship on the horizon. No crew to take me away. No Jack.

I looked up at the clock tower which stood a few streets away but stood up high enough to read from the harbour. It was quarter past twelve...he wasn't coming. The fortune teller had said that Jack would be here in the morning and it was clearly now the afternoon and he was not yet here.

He wasn't coming. Disappointment flooded my body, extinguishing my excitement like boiling water being poured onto an ice cube.

But then there was another feeling. The fortune teller had lied. He lied to me knowing full well what I could do.

My face darkened and I turned my back to the sea and stormed back up into the town.

He lied.

I turned the corner.

I stood waiting for two hours!

I half ran down the street where the child had been the previous day.

I'm wet and cold!!

I faced the blackened door.

False hope.

I was mad, angry. My cutlass was already clenched in my hand, my fingers wrapped so tightly around it that my knuckles were white.

Throwing the door open I stormed in. People were talking again but I didn't care. The anger coursed through my veins, cursing every fibre with anger.

Dagger stood before me with another man, whose back was turned.

Dagger turned, his face turning paler than it already was at the sight of me.

"Where is she?!?" the other man roared at Dagger.

Suddenly the anger inside me vanished so quickly that I couldn't be sure that is was there is the first place. My face went from fury to shock, from shock to relief.

The man with his back turned to me froze as if realising someone was behind him. A man with a three cornered hat. A man with braids streaming through his hair. A man I knew well.

"Jack!" I cried.


	17. Reunited

A/N: Ok here is chapter 17!! Hope you all enjoy it!! The return of Jack!!! YAY! Thankyou soooooo much to all my reviewers!! Keep up the good reviewing coz it gives me motive to write!!

Disclaimer: No not yet but still working on it!

Enjoy....and review!

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Chapter 17: Reunited

Jack spun round and I watched as the anger from threatening Dagger vanished in an instant. Anger, shock, excitement, happiness. I watched them sweep over his face one by one.

"Annie!" he said finally dropping his cutlass to his side and rushing forwards to hug me.

However he didn't have to go far as I interpreted his move and ran to meet him in the middle. It felt so good. To finally be back with him, the warmth of his arms wrapped tightly around me. I inhaled deeply and smiled as I sucked in the familiar smell of sea mist and rum.

His hand ran up and down my back in a soothing fashion and I was surprised to find that it sent a wave of shivers down my spine. Good shivers.

A cough erupted from behind us, snapping us out of the clouds and back down to reality. Dagger stood trying desperately to hide the cough by looking into the corner. The man was clearly petrified out of his mind. Bless him!

I felt no longer angry at him but instead pitied him like a crying child. My heart was full of warmth, happiness and relief and it was all due to the return of Jack.

"Well we won't be needing you anymore," Jack said trying to sound polite.

I smiled, "Aye, thanks yea for your help but..." I stopped and stood shocked as the man broke down in tears on the floor.

He desperately clawed at the floor, his nails digging into the dirty wooden structure. Sobs erupted from his mouth and tears streamed from his face making a pool on the floor.

Jack and I exchanged wary glances.

"Please!...please....don't...k...k...kill me!!" the man stuttered, still crying into the floor.

My eyes widened as I realised why he was breaking down in front of us. By saying 'we won't need you anymore' and 'thanks for your help but...' the man had though that we were going to dispose of him and cut his life short by a quick blow to the head with the blade of a cutlass. I snapped the image out of my head,

"No! We're not going to kill you..." but remembering I was a 'fearsome pirate' I added, "...so long as not a word of this escapes."

"Oh not a word! Not a word!" the man shouted in a shrill voice, the puddle of tears growing larger.

Jack gave me a weary eye which was hiding a sly smile.

I turned towards the door, "coming?" I asked Jack with an amused look on my face and one eyebrow raised.

Jack followed me out onto the street and we both started talking at once. Both of us ranting about each and everything that had happened to us since we last saw each other was not the best way to talk as neither of us could hear a word of what the other was saying. Suddenly we both stopped, and laughed.

I stood with my arms folded in an entertained way and studied the man before me. Nothing much had changed about him. The red bandana secured tightly around his forehead still flapped in the breeze, his dirty white shirt still lay two thirds of the way buttoned up showing his manly chest underneath, and his dreadlocks and braids still hung the exact same way I remembered them to be. His eyes still twinkled in the sunlight giving away his love and excitement for the sea. The only things that were different about him was just under his eyes. They were dark and weary as though he hadn't slept in weeks.

I had a sudden urge to kiss him.

"What?" he questioned, looking at me sideways.

I snapped the image of Jack and I kissing out of my mind and put it down to the fact that I was just excited to see him. "Just reminding myself what you look like," I said looking him up and down, "yup I remember now." I let out a giggle, as if I could ever forget what Jack looked like!

"And?" he asked with a cheeky grin plastered on his face and a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

"Sweaty, dirty pirate," I mused. He spluttered and we both burst out laughing. Both of us knew how excited the other was.

I took a step forwards and we walked down the street in the direction of the nearest tavern.

"So what happened to you afterwards?" Jack asked as we walked.

I began explaining everything. How I was captured by the Red Coats, how Gilette helped me escape, how I was smothered in gifts and finally how I stood for an hour and a half in the pouring rain waiting for his arrival.

To my disappointment he laughed. "I wondered why you were soaked!"

I shot him a scowl but couldn't keep it on my face for long and Jack watched as it crinkled into a smile and soon I was laughing again at something I had been so angry about just ten minutes ago.

We entered the tavern, which had miraculously appeared in front of us, and edged our way thorough the morning throng of pirates who had assembled for rum, rum and more rum. Some lay slumped already onto the table with hands outstretched before them grouping for the dregs in the bottom of their bone dry mugs. Others sat in corners with their shifty eyes, one hand rested firmly on a cutlass hilt or gun barrel. But most stood fighting in the main part of the Inn. Fists, feet, cutlasses and gunshot's flared everywhere accompanied by shouts of anger, shouts of pain and shouts of just plain shouting. Yup...Tortuga was much the same as it ever was.

Choosing a table at the very back of the room Jack and I sat each with a mug of rum secured firmly in our hands, both of us smiling.

"So what about you?" I asked after both of us had had a long drink from the metallic tankards.

"Well I woke up on some deserted island just like you really. Managed to lash myself a couple of sea turtles and ride my way here," he said matter-of-factly with a sly grin on his face.

I gave him one of those sideways looks which bored into him saying that I didn't believe a word of it.

"Ok..." he said finally, weakening under my glare, "I hitched a lift with the Rum Runners again. Managed to barter my way over by trading in some odds and ends."

"Why didn't you just tell them that you're the Sparrow?" I said outraged that he had to pay.

"The Rum Runners? They wouldn't even give the King of England a trip over the channel for free if he asked!!" he laughed at my ignorance.

I mumbled and stuck my head back into my rum only to shoot it straight back up again.

"Hang on...where's the Pearl?!?"

His faced suddenly dawned on the fact that neither of us had come with the Black Pearl. We both stared at each other.

"Its your ship! Didn't it dawn on you when I told you I came via Gillette that I wasn't on the Pearl?" I asked, shocked.

"I was too excited to see yea to notice!!! Uh...I mean...." He trailed off obviously trying to keep 'fearsome pirate' image. A lot of people do that nowadays!

"Oh great!" I said sarcastically, "We're back to stage one!"


	18. A hint from Dark Power

A/N: Ok sorry for the wait! Please read and review!!

Disclaimer: I've done seventeen of these so far and still the answer remains the same and I'm running out of things to say!! I don't own Disney, or Harry Potter either (he gets a mention for some reason in this chappie)

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Chapter 18: A hint from Dark Power 

We both sat in silence for a few moments, thinking hard about what the hell were going to do. A sticky situation but none the less I was faintly happy. I had Jack at least; I was no longer on my own.

"I reckon Ana took control, being the bossy one, Gibbs would have urged her to sail to Tortuga..." Jack muttered to himself trying to figure out what where the Pearl could have possible ended up.

My own mind began to scan through the possibilities. There were so many places the Black Pearl could be that I had doubts we would ever find it. But then again they would be looking for us as well but... My mind scatted around thinking wildly as I rapped my fingers sharply on the table.

Rum after rum slowly appeared and vanished down into our bellies and soon it was hard to think at all. Finally Jack peered up at me.

"They could be anywhere luv," he stated in a half drunken mood, "If they are on the Pearl at all. What's to say they didn't all get deserted on islands?"

His face looked thoroughly miserable but there was still the tiniest sign of relief. Fierce pirate he may be, but I knew deep inside he was glad I was there.

I looked to the rough table in front of me as I felt my hopes disappear. Only an hour ago I thought I could never be unhappy again but now, and maybe it was the liquor taking hold, I felt crushed.

A shiver ran up my spine and slowly made it towards my arm. I didn't really take any notice of it but as I reached forwards for my mug I could feel it settle on my wrist. I tried to ignore it but it got stronger and as I picked up the mug it sent a sharp pain into the bone causing me to drop it spilling the remaining red liquid inside to spill over the floor.

"Goddamn it OUCH!" I cried simultaneously with another. Clutching my wrist I looked up to find Jack clutching his own wrist in the same manor with his rum spilt over the chiselled table.

His eyes met mine and we were silent for a moment before we pulled up the sleeve on the offending arm to reveal our tattoos. They both looked different, like they were sticking out slightly in a 3D picture. I couldn't describe it. It was too freaky, too strange to bear. It was like something out of Harry Potter. But the more I thought of Harry Potter and my world the less I could remember. Who was Harry Potter?

I shook my head deciding to leave this matter for another day and to concentrate on the matter at hand. Jack still sat staring at his wrist in an uncanny matter that unnerved me.

My thoughts suddenly drifted to the sea. It was like I could see it in front of me, as clear as day. Sweeping along I saw islands I recognised, islands I had visited with Jack. Then it stopped. At one Island. And I saw it. The Pearl docked in a hidden away bay.

I snapped my eyes open, back in the Tavern, and looked at Jack.

"Jamaica," we said in unison.

Both of us jumped up, having both gone through the same thing.

We walked briskly out of the door and I forgot the freakiness of it all. Some how we both knew where the Pearl was and the only thing on our minds was to get it back. And fast!

Down to the docks we ran, or rather walked fast. It was twilight and there were few people wandering around as most of them were up in the Taverns drinking their hearts delight.

"We need a Ship, or a boat," Jack said stating the obvious.

There were few small enough for us both to commandeer and steer all the way to Jamaica alone. Rowboats were not big enough and ships were too big.

Jack took his pirate swagger and walked up to the water's edge scanning the water as though sniffing out the best boat.

Then he spotted one. It was small, with only one sail and one cabin at the back. Perfect in every way except...

"Oi!" came the sharp voice from the man inside when he finally noticed Jack's interest in his vessel.

Jack grimaced; he hadn't noticed the sleeping man. I took a sideways glance at Jack and gave him the smallest wink from the corner of my eye. He shook his head but I stepped forwards anyway.

"You poor sailor," I said in a baby silk voice, "All alone on such a big boat."

"Well someone has to look after it," he was taking the bait and staring wide-eyed at my body which I was flaunting about.

"You should be out having fun shouldn't you?" I whispered into his ear as I lent forwards in a seductive manor. He was where I wanted him, he wasn't afraid that I was close to him.

"Why don't I have fun here?" he muttered in a nauseating greasy voice which would have made me shudder if I hadn't have been putting on my best act.

"I think that's the best idea I've heard all night," came my soft reply as my hand slowly made its way down his body. The man smiled before his face contorted with pain and he dropped back dead.

I removed my hand from his groin pulling out the blood-drenched dagger I had used to silently kill him. I smiled, pleased with my work but suddenly felt a hand on my back.

Jack pulled me back into a hug. It was an odd hug...one might say it was a hug riddled with jealousy. His arms wrapped around my chest and I hugged them close. Being seductive to some greasy pirate was not exactly my idea of fun. Slowly I eased his arms off me and moved towards the dead body to throw it over board. When I turned around Jack had disappeared into the cabin.

I bit my lip and looked worryingly at the cabin door while rubbing the blood from the dagger off with a nearby rope.

Silently I prepared for departure; the ropes, the bow, the sails. All was ready and Jack had still not appeared. I knocked on the door, we really had to leave before the other owner of the boat made an appearance.

"Jack?" I whispered, "we have to leave."

I heard a clunk from inside and finally the door opened. Jack looked... I can't describe how Jack looked, a pirate should look fierce and I'm not about to take that away from him.

I turned away from him, pretending not to notice, and went about the duties to set sail. Jack took his position at the helm, or what can only be described as the helm for it was a pitiful one at that, and we said goodbye to the shores of Tortuga.

For the last time?

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A/N. Ooooh wot do you think? Jack/Annie vibes???? Maybe ;) Should there be Annie/Jack vibes?? Tell me what you guys think!!


	19. Goodbye Memory

A/N: Hello again!! And thankyou all soo much for reviewing!! I love to get them soooo much!!! Sorry for the lateness of this chapter but I had real difficult writing it. Jack is a hard character to write when he is in love seeing as we have nothing to go on! So please overlook the terrible character of Jack and feel free to have a moan in the reviews!

Disclaimer: this doesn't dignify an answer!

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Chapter 19: Goodbye memory

The journey snailed past so slowly that if we had been racing a tortoise we would have come off the worst. We hardly spoke to one another the whole way and it was unbearable. Jack went about his duties as captain as usual but there was a look in his eyes. Jealousy? Anger? Sadness? I couldn't tell.

The boat was too small for him to avoid me the whole day and when we accidentally passed one another his eyes would shift to the sea or to the floor and he would mumble some apology as if I didn't want him there.

The fourth day was coming to an end and I sat dangling my feet over the side of the boat watching the sun setting. Magnificent colours of orange, red and yellow scoured the dusky sky. If I could have taken a photo it would have won a competition. I blinked. A photo? What was that?

"Photo? Where do I know that from?" I muttered to myself. I could not for the life of me remember. In fact the more I looked at my memory the less I could remember. I remembered... Jack finding me a cabin on the Pearl, everything else was just a vast stretch of blackness.

I lifted my hand off the rope which was studying me and held it to my head. I didn't feel ill. So why had I suddenly forgotten my whole life before Jack? I wobbled and my hand snatched straight back to the rope. The sunset really did look beautiful, maybe it didn't matter if I had forgotten. But there was something. Something big in my past which was trying desperately to make it's way to me, not that I could remember.

A tear formed in my eye and before I knew it I was bawling my eyes out clutching desperately to the rope. Why couldn't I remember? The beautiful sunset smeared and blurred as the tears filled my eyes and the sound of the sea became silent to my sobs.

Suddenly a hand appeared on my shoulder, a warm hand.

"Luv?!"

I forgot the silent treatment he'd been giving me. I forgot the look of jealousy in his eyes. Standing up I buried myself in his shoulder and whimpered into his rum scented sleeve.

"I've forgotten. I've forgotten it all!"

"Forgotten what luv?" he sounded concerned but rubbed my back and stroked my hair in a soothing way.

"Everything...everything..."

It was about all he could get out of me for about ten minutes until we just stood there in each other's arms in front of that sunset.

Finally I let go of his arms leaving a snotty wet patch on his clean white shirt. But he didn't seem to mind.

"Hey," he said wiping my eyes with his sleeve, "don't worry luv," he smiled in a comforting way to me and lifted my chin with his finger.

It sent those shivers of an exited school girl down my spine.

"I can't remember...what happened to me before I turned up on the Pearl?" I said looking away to let those shivers calm down.

Jack's face winced slightly, he didn't know the truth. "You wouldn't say," he said simply.

Then I remembered the story I had told him but when I looked up at him startled he shook his head.

"I've been a pirate all me life, I think I know when someone is lying to me," he said with a slight wink in the corner of his left eye. A shot of guilt wiggled its way down my body and I glanced at the floor.

"Not to worry," he smiled, "people's past is something they should be able to keep to themselves."

"Why havn't you been talking to me?" I said abruptly, completely changing the conversation topic. His eyes widened and it was his turn to look guilty. And then there was that look again.

"Jack?"

"Nothin'" he mumbled.

"Come on Jack, don't I have the right to know why you've been ignoring me?"

"No," I made out through the murmur.

"If it's how I killed that man then I don't understand why you should be angry. It didn't make a noise, we got away safely and frankly I gather the man deserved it." Apparently I wasn't getting it. Jack's face fell.

"It's just..." he began but trailed off. My mouth fell open and my eyes widened. Jack Sparrow?? Trail off?? The words should not be in the same sentence!

I took hold of his hands and squeezed them tightly. "Jack?" I asked gently wondering what the hell was going on, "are you ok?"

It was as though everything around us went silent; the sea died down, the breeze settled to nothing and the birds stopped their cry. Jack turned to face me, his beautiful eyes glinting in the dying sun's rays.

"It's just that I..."

Suddenly there was an ear splitting crack and the ground below us juddered violently. We wobbled about springing into action. Jack jumped on the helm and tried desperately to veer off the thing we had just hit. I, meanwhile, ran to the lonely sail pulling it back into the gust of the wind from where it had settled due to me neglecting my duties. Still the boat creaked and juddered.

"We've landed on the shoals!" I yelled to Jack as I peered over the edge to come face to face with an eyeful of coral.

Jack pushed all his weight onto the helm and finally we felt a little of the boat move. But then something terrible happened...

A gust of wind swept out from nowhere and the whole boat crashed sideways into the blue waters. I went flying out into the sea and was so shocked that I swallowed a mouthful of salty water causing me to choke. Jack still clung to the boat and looked rather comical swinging from the broken mast. So, like the idiot I am, I began to laugh. I laughed so hard that Jack actually joined in. Bad idea.

Whenever someone laughs when they are swimming they generally begin to sink which is exactly what started to happen to me. Innocent blue water rushed over my head filling my ears but still I laughed. And the more I laughed the more I sank. The more I sank the more I laughed. It was a vicious circle!

The blue water gushed into my mouth as I sank and my laughter turned into choking but for some reason I still couldn't find my swimming legs. I began to panic. Until I felt a pair of strong hands around my waist pulling me upwards.

I gasped in the oxygenated air as my head broke through the water and coughed aggressively. Jack pulled me out of the water with surprising ease, his strong arms wrapped gently but firmly around my waist.

I was hauled onto the small rim of boat which still hung out of the water and lay choking in Jack's arms. It was only then when I realised the seriousness of what had happened. I could have died!

"Are you alright luv?" came the worried voice of Jack Sparrow.

I sat up and spat up the last few drops of water, "Aye, aye!" I gasped. Then I started laughing, again.

"It's not funny," Jack said, a little worried for my sanity.

"I know..." I gasped between laughs, "I don't know why...I'm laughing!"

Jack smiled, "Well where we are ain't no laughing matter,"

I gazed around myself at the steadily darkening sea. The sun had set and only the light blueness of twilight and the dark blue sea surrounded us. There was no way the boat would ever move again, the gaping hole in its base told us that as much. We were stranded. Stranded in the middle of the ocean with nowhere to hide and no way of getting to Jamaica.

My laughter died abruptly along with my smile.

"No worries luv," Jack grinned, "it'll just be a bit cosy tonight until we can swim in the morning."

"SWIM?!" I exclaimed, "there is NO WAY I am SWIMMING all the way to Jamaica!"

"It's only about an hour swim," Jack laughed standing up.

"An hour?!" I mumbled to myself. Jack was insane!

"Quit your moaning lass," he stood onto the coral which the boat was stranded on and began heaving the boat the right way up. Reluctantly I got up and helped him being careful where I placed my feet. One wrong step and it was bye bye Annie!

Finally the boat was the right way up. The mast had completely been ripped off by the corals when it was lying on it's side and the cabin was full of water. So Jack and I settled on the deck to sleep. The sun was long gone and had toed twilight along like a child and it's drag along toy. The darkness of night pressed itself around us but the soft twinkle of the revealing stars stretched out before us to lull us to sleep.

A gentle breeze caused brushed by and I let out a shiver. Instantly I felt an arm wrap gently around my waist. Jack's arm. I was going to throw it off but when I tried to lift my arm I found it was more than reluctant to do so. Jack's arm was warm and protective. I felt as though I could walk into a whole army of redcoats so long as his arms was wrapped around me. What's more I _wanted_ it to be there.

I drifted to sleep under the twinkling stars nuzzled deep into Jack's shoulder.

The perfect way to fall asleep.


	20. Swimming in the Sea

A/N: Soz for the delay but I finally got this chapter finished! It's not very long hense the reason why you are getting 2! Please please read and review!! I love reading reviews!!

Chapter 20: Swimming in the Sea:

The sun rose slowly but gave me an uncomfortable start when the first ray of light peeped round a blackening cloud and seared into my eyes and waking me up in a fit of blindness. The second thing that hit me was the sharp aching pain in my back where I had been laying in a most uncomfortable position all night long. The third thing that hit me was the cold sogginess of my clothes where the sea had sprayed and splashed its crystal waters over my body throughout the night. Finally I realised that there was a soft and slightly warm body laying beside me…Jack.

Rolling over I saw a crinkling grimace emitting from Jack's face as he woke himself with the same discomfort as I did. I sat up and rubbed the sore spot on my back whilst stretching out the aching muscles on my neck and arms.

"Comfy," muttered Jack doing the same.

I turned around and gazed out into the ocean. The smallest prick of pin points stood faintly upon the horizon…Jamaica.

"We are swimming all the way over there?" I asked faintly.

"Aye,"

"No,"

"What?"

"I am not doing it… I'll…I'll drown!"

"Well its either that or wait here for the fishies to eat you," Jack mused, "It's not really that far."

"NOT THAT FAR?!?!?!? Are you MAD Jack Sparrow? Its bloody miles! Plus its going to rain!" I couldn't believe it…I would never make it that far. Sure I could swim but this was just ridiculous!

"Well we'll be wet anyway," he shrugged turning away from me.

A large splash erupted from the water before me and my eyes flashed to see Jack swimming in the freezing water. Mad…absolutely mad.

"Come on luv!" he laughed.

I took a small step forwards ready to take a gentle ladylike slide into the water only my foot managed to land itself on the slimiest, wettest and most slippy piece of coral there was in the whole ocean! My foot whooshed out in front of me causing my body to turn horizontal to the water before I landed forcefully into the deep blue waters in the most un lady like way possible.

Once my head managed to push its way up through the top of the water my ears were immediately hit by the sound of Jack roaring with laughter.

"Jack! It's not funny!" I protested at once, "Shut up!"

But this caused him to erupt in another wave of laughter. My face turned scarlet with anger and I leapt forwards on top of his head forcing his still dry hair into the water. He returned to the surface as angry as I had been moments ago but with the most hilarious hair I had ever seen. His dreadlocks were soaked and small wisps of soaking hair had stuck themselves to his face making him seriously comic.

I laughed my head off pointing at his hair just in case he didn't know what I was laughing and just to make sure that his humiliation was doubled.

A large raindrop landed next to me.

Jack's face was a sight for sore eyes, his eyes were almost popping out of his head with anger. He took a leap for my head and sunk it like I did to him, not that it would make much difference though because my hair was already dripping with water from when I had fallen in.

I emerged and simultaneously began dunking each other in the water and jumping on top of each other to make it more forceful. The anger ebbed away and a giggle sneaked past my lips followed by another and another.

It was raining heavily now.

Jack let out a roaring laugh and we continued our game.

Sheets of rain hit us unnoticed.

I lunged at his head again but this time he caught my wrists and held them tightly. We both laughed for no reason and then…

I saw those sodden dreadlocks move closer…

The shivers up my spine multiplied by a thousand…

The laughing stopped and…

And…

We kissed.

His hand ran down my spine and my hands ran their way through his dreads. It felt so good… so warm… his beard tickled my cheek but I didn't care.

All I knew was the warmth and how good it was. How much I cared for him.

And then it stopped. I opened my eyes and looked deeply into those chocolate brown eyes which seemed to go on forever and I smiled at his smiling face.

There was a pause, a hesitation until I shyly looked down to the bright blue sea.

Then I gazed at the sky…what had seconds ago been thick black clouds and sheets of freezing water hitting a black sea was now quite quite different. There was not a single cloud in the sky and the hot sun pounded down on us from the bright blue waters which was reflected by the sea.

Then I felt a tell tale prickling just above my right wrist where the tattoo of the Magpie lay. The Sparrow and the Magpie reunited again?


	21. Oh no not now!

Chapter 21: Oh s not now!

The sea seemed to go on for miles and I was getting absolutely shattered. Jack, however, looked unusually perky and seemed to be enjoying his swim as though it was a casual walk through a forest or something.

He turned and smiled at me just to make it ten times worse. I had a stitch in my side.

_Ten minutes later_

The sea just went on forever

_Fifeteen minutes later_

The stitch was getting worse and the island seemed just as far away as it had when I was on the boat this morning.

_Thirty minutes later_

The pain in my chest was unbearable and my face was brick red with heat. We had to be there soon!

_Forty minutes later_

"Jack I refuse to go any further!"

He stopped swimming and glanced back at me grinning _again _but this time I blushed remembering that kiss.

We paused for a few moments and once I caught my breath we were back to our front crawl and breast stroke. Swim, swim, swim. And then finally, finally FINALLY we reached the beach and stumbled hot and panting onto the white sands of Jamaica. I fell face first into the powdery ground and relaxed every muscle in my body at long last. And I was pleased to note that Jack did the same, he was humane after all.

I blacked out for a few moments, maybe minutes…perhaps an hour. Well anyway the next thing I knew Jack was waking me up gently and indicating that it was time to move on.

I stood up and felt my face cracking…it was completely covered in sand. Great. Jack sniggered and suddenly, just like that, I forgot about the shy feelings due to the kiss. I picked up a handful of sand, slung it in his direction and started off at a fast pace towards the forest surrounding the beach.

"RIGHT!" shouted Jack, "that's it!!" and he sped after me with a handful of sand ready to chuck at me. I screeched loudly and ran light footed into the trees to loose myself in their midst before Jack caught up with me.

"Where did yea go?"

"I'm hiding!! You can't find me!" I felt like a child again…only…I couldn't remember what happened when I was a child.

I felt something hard dig into my back. Jack had caught up with me. I put my hands in the air mocking capture and turned around grinning…

My face fell at once for it was not Jack who stood behind me but the pristine washed, bright red, neatly ironed jackets of a dozen King's Royal Navy and they all had the sharp pointed end of their sword pointing my way.

"Pirate," stated the one who's blade had been sticking in my side.

"Uhhh…," I stuttered glancing down at my clothing. There was no way of covering up my distinctive pirate clothing or the sword hanging limply by my side which was unfortunately too far away for me to grab. So I swallowed nervously hoping beyond hope that Jack had gotten away.

"What?! Your not…." Came a familiar voice from behind me somewhere in the trees.

"Not who?" came another voice in the trees. I strained to listen but my own capturer was busy talking to me.

"You are under arrest," another leapt forwards and seized my cutlass and pistol that was tucked 'safely' into my socks. I groaned and looked to the sky as if it would suddenly help me in the time of need but the cold heavy weight of steel clasp itself around my wrists. A harsh tug twigged me into walking in between the men all of whom looked ecstatic at their capture. Soon the bushes rustled beside us and another load of red coats appeared with Jack in tow.

He grimaced at me but said nothing. We walked for some five minutes until we came out into a clearing where a wagon and horses were waiting. We were chained to the back of the wagon and dragged along rather harshly while the rest of them jumped on board all chatting about how they were going to be rewarded for the capture of the Sparrow and the Magpie.

The cart got faster and my feet could barely keep up with it and soon I was stumbling and tripping everywhere so much so that Jack had to put an arm out to steady me. Everything was going wrong, loosing the Pearl, getting shipwrecked, swimming for nearly a whole day and now being captured. I felt sick the bone with it all. All I wanted more than anything else in the world was to be rid of the curse bestowed upon me and Jack and be warm and safe upon the Black Pearl with him and the crew. Anamaria could shout all she wanted, Gibbs could complain as much as he liked about women being a bad curse for a ship and there could be as many chores as there could be for me to do but anything, anything could be better than this.

What fate would be waiting for me around the corner? If I escaped being hung by the red coats was there any reason why I should bother going on or was there always going to be something around the corner ready to prance on me putting my life into danger again? Hope was giving out on me and my feet began to refuse to run. I slowed down into a hopeless walk but the cart continued to speed on so much so that I lost footing and was being dragged along the ground, dust, mud and grit being poured into my skin.

My hope was dead and the sky turned a stormy grey.

But then a pair of strong hands bent down and lifted me up again and I saw a concerned face of my captain, my closest friend, the man I loved. And the flame inside me was relit.

A/N: Hey guys sorry this chappy is a bit scatty and very very late indeed! Like I said once I will finish this story as I have the perfect ending for it all written out in my head! Its just that when I write something else seemes to happen all the time!

By the way this whole 'Jack and Anna' thing is supposed to be slow moving because I'm trying to get across the feelings that someone would get if they fell in love with their closest friend. Unfortunately it kind of happened to me so I know exactly how Annie is feeling only of course Jack repays her love. :-)


	22. Jim

Chapter 22: Jim

"Nope, the commodore says they are to be hung this afternoon and no later…jus' between you an' me I think he's scared they'll escape again. Plus putting her in that cell? Anyone could pass things through the bars to her an' we'd be none the wiser,"

"But all the other cell's are full! What with this new security thing an' all,"

I sat with my head pressed firmly on the bars of my nice little cell straining my ears to hear what the guards were talking about behind the door. Of course a smirk came over my face at the sound of Norrington getting afraid that we may escape because, of course, we would do exactly that whether we were hung this afternoon or the next morning. We always did. That was the hope I clung onto.

It was a bit lonely in my cell. Jack was in a different part of the prison so that we couldn't plot and scheme about how to get out of our sticky mess. At least Norrington would be able to think he was getting smarter making it so much more fun when we finally did escape.

"Leave off I would never sleep with Mary-Leah even if you paid me…those pimples make me wan' t' smack 'er one!"

Their conversation had turned away from the highly dangerous prisoners held captive and I lost interest.

Standing up I made my way over to the small window, a whole two steps. These cell's surely were the height of luxury. Peering out I regarded a large courtyard where peasants roamed, it was the changed look of Jamaica and let me tell you it was not a nice sight. New buildings had sprung up making it look cluttered and it was apparent that the Kings Navy had moved in. Hence the reason why we were captured un-aware.

"Oi! Look it's a pirate!!! A REAL pirate!!!" It was a small mousy haired kid who was sat on a nearby rock just outside the 'window' I had been privileged with. The boy was pointing straight at me signalling to his friends who were playing in the dirt with what looked like an a few sticks.

"WOW! It really is!" another of the boys had noticed me and his face was lit up with excitement. "Do you think he'll hurt us if we go close?"

I smiled to myself, as if I could ever have the heart to harm a child. The four lads cautiously stood up brushing off the worst of the dust and began to approach the small rectangular window. My eyebrow raised…they stopped dead in their tracks.

"I don't think we should go closer…e might…" one lad began before turning and running off towards home kicking up the dust behind him.

"Go on Jim…you go closer!"

"Why me?"

"Because you spotted 'im,"

"Doesn't mean I should…oh…"

The boy, presumably Jim, took another step closer holding his breath as though I could swipe out at any moment and kill him. Oh it was good to have power even if they were only children.

"Oi! 'E ain't no man e's a girl!" Jim gasped.

"Nice of yea to notice," I said suddenly.

The other boy, who up until now had remained silent, squealed and ran off leaving two of them behind.

"I…I'm sorry miss, I only ever saw one woman pirate before in me whole life," Jim continued.

"None of this 'miss' lark you hear?" I frowned, "the name's Annie and you might just well be what I need."

The boy gulped but knelt of the ground so he could be closer to the bars and hear me properly despite his friends warnings not to get too close.

"As you might have noticed I'm a bit trapped here and if I don't get out before the end of this day I won't ever see tomorrow morning…if you get my meaning,"

The boy nodded but I noticed him gulp rather nervously. "I could help you miss….uh…Annie. I ain't got nothing better to do and me pa always told me pirates weren't as bad as folk say."

"Aye," I looked into his eyes. They seemed true enough and innocent, maybe the kid was reliable. "And what is it your pa does?"

"He owns the tavern down the road, he said pirates used to come all the time to drink there until…they came," It was obvious he was talking of the Navy and their dealings in this town.

My mind raced for a way this boy could help. And then it hit me, "I only ever saw one woman pirate before"…of course!! He must have been talking about Anamaria.

"Tell me, this woman pirate you met before…was it here?" I questioned.

"Aye, it was the other day she came,"

"And did she have long brown hair and a tanned face?"

"…Aye, you know her?"

"Listen to me…you have to go and find her for me ok? Ask her is her name is Anamaria and if it is tell her where I am savvy?"

"Aye aye!" he said standing up and giving me a childlike salute which made me wince.

"And one word to anyone else about this and I'll have your throat," I added ensuring that my plan would not get discovered. The boy's face turned an ashen white but he nodded fiercely and ran as fast as he could to find her.

I sighed gratefully and let out a small laugh. Of course there was no need for the boy to realise that there was no way I could 'have his throat' unless he successfully found a way of getting me out.

Now all I had to do was wait. I sat myself on the cold stone floor and began to muse on what I would do once I was free. I settled on drinking rum and getting drunk, that would do me fine. Not a lot happened during the next half an hour. I shifted about a bit on the floor and played with the buttons on my jacket for a while.

"Psst!" came a noise suddenly from the window.

I peered up, shading my eyes from the sun, but saw nothing. Standing up I moved closer to the window and the small face of the boy swept into vision.

"Well?? Did you find her?" I asked.

"Aye! She gave me this to give to yea," his small boney fingers pushed a letter through the bars. "I'm sorry but I have to go now," he continued, "my ma wants me home,"

"Wait," I said taking the letter and rummaging in my pockets, "here, for your troubles," and into his palm I squeezed out two gold pieces.

His face lit up with amazement, "Th…thankyou miss! I mean…Annie!"

I smiled at him, "now go before someone noticed you,"

The boy looked around warily, thanked me again and sped off.

I turned around and focused my attention onto the letter. Taking no time to notice the tattered state of the paper I ripped it open and read:

_Glad to finally hear you are finally safe…well as safe to the fact that you are still alive._

_Our plan we shall keep a secret encase this letter falls into the wrong hands._

_Be ready for the two quarters._

_Anamaria_

I read the letter through twice to make sure I took in the whole meaning. Ready at the two quarters? I pondered this riddle for a while and found myself staring out of the window at the clock in the courtyard. Two quarters? Well one quarter would be…three o'clock? So two must be 6 o'clock. But that would be too late! Jack and I were due to be hung this afternoon.

I paced the cell a few times thinking hard about what to do, and then I noticed the forgotten envelope which I had to hastily torn off. I picked it up and regarded the outside. Although torn and battered there was nothing of interest on it. I thumbed with it for a moment or two before pulling it open and staring at the insides. There, scratched in tiny writing at the bottom, was another note.

_Opposite, door open._

I paced the cell again. 'Door open'…they needed the cell door to be open! But 'opposite'? I pondered for a while but decided to go back to the time issue.

And then it hit me. 6 o'clock…the opposite of that was…midday! They were coming at midday and my cell door needed to be open. I carefully folded up the letter and tucked it into my trousers. It was half past ten…I had one hour and a half.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the late update again but I finally finished this chappie! Hope you all had a great Christmas and have a good new year! Thankyou so much for the reviews I love reading them!!

Please review again!!


	23. Jailbreak!

Chapter 23: Jailbreak!

I glanced at the clock…twelve minutes to go. There were a few butterflies humming around in my stomach but there was also the excitement, the thrill which always came before doing something daring. My fingers twitched, desperate to start their work but I quietly told them to wait.

I had been planning it since I got the letter, ok so it wasn't the cleverest and cunningest of plans but I was sure it would work. Every ten minutes a guard would walk past my 'window', if you could call it that anyway. It was a long shot but somehow it was the only way I could come up with and I was determind to make it work.

I looked at the clock again out in the square…eleven minutes. One minute and my plan would go into action.

I waited.

The long hand on the clock slowly moved onto the 10 and my fingers snapped into place. Sure enough as my hands swept onto the dusty street they came into contact with a bright red trouser leg of the guard. I pulled on it hard, hoping beyond might that the man was wearing a belt and the trousers wouldn't just slip down. But sure enough the leg of a very surprised man came flying into the cell and I latched the bit of cloth I was holding onto a broken nail that was randomly sticking out of the stone wall. So far the plan was working.

The poor man groaned as his crotch came into contact with the hard metal bars and his other leg crumpled out of place. He was right where I wanted him and I could see the small flash of his sword as it glinted in its sheath.

There was no one about in the courtyard, which was lucky, as most of the peasants were at home taking a siesta. I turned away from the unconscious man and yelled towards the steps outside the cell door,

"HELP! HELP!! THERE IS A MAN HERE WHO NEEDS HELP!!"

And sure enough I heard the scuttle of feet and the scratch of a lock. I turned back to the man, trying to look casual. He was young, maybe a few years older than I, and had a perfectly shaped face. It made me blush and I looked away immediately thinking about Jack and what he might say…which made me grin.

There was the scratch of the lock being done up again and the jingle of the keys being passed back to the man who stood watch outside it. And then the scuttering of feet again down the stair way. I managed to wipe away the smile just as three men turned around the corner, all dressed in bright scarlet clothing.

"What the bloody hell…?" one man began, his mouth hanging wide open in amazement at seeing the man dangling half through the bars from the street outside.

"Get away from him!" another yelled at me as though it was all my fault…which of course it was.

I took a step back from the young unconscious man and gave them my most innocent looking face. "He must have slipped," I said quietly as the other men opened the door to my cell. I noticed one of them stayed near the exit encase I was to try some daring escape. I had to take my hat off to them, the navy had improved on prisoner settings.

The man who entered the cell went straight to the poor man and began talking to him, trying to wake him from an unstoppable sleep. The other, however, came and stood guard over me, his sword brandished. They weren't letting their suspicious guard down for anything. It was turning into a game…who would be the first to die?

The man in front of me tightened the grip on his cutlass and I realised I had been smiling. Suspiciousness had just gone up a notch on the suspicious counter.

Our eyes were locked like some war of the glares. I kept mine innocent and emotionless but his was riddled with anger and hatred. What had I done to him? Oh wait, yes, I was a pirate ergo the scum of the universe ergo you don't need a reason to hate us.

So I waited for him to break the staring competition. It is a law unto pirates to never give in. Finally he gave in and glanced at the man, who was still unconscious. I took the opportunity to take a fleeting look at the clock…there was less than 3 minutes to go, I was running late.

The man was back staring at me when I started my next move.

I gasped and looked at the window. It worked! The two men looked at him but by the time they had looked back I was fully stuck in my plan.

My left knee had come flying up into the groin of man in front of me and as the other watched in horror as he fell to the floor my hand swooped right and grabbed the blade I had seen earlier. Pulling it out I held it to the other man's neck who froze and looked at me with petrified eyes.

But it wasn't over yet. The man guarding the door said calmly, "Release him or I shoot."

He was standing with an incredibly steady hand pointing a gun in the direction of my head. My mind flurried, I only had two minutes.

My eyes lowered and I loosened the grip on the cutlass letting the man in front of me feel relieved. But inside I was buzzing with a nervous excitement. Like I would give in that easily! The man holding the gun blinked and I resumed my position thrusting the blade through the man's neck and dodging just in time to miss the bullet fly straight past my into the wall. But I wasn't quick enough to miss the ricochet which bounced off the wall in a thousand pieces and planted themselves deep in my right hand.

"Holy cra…" I began shaking out the bleeding hand, but there was no time to worry.

The man advanced towards me and tried vainly to stab me in the heart which I narrowly missed by blocking it with my cutlass. Ducking another blow I exchanged hands, the right was too painful to fight with and although I had had no training fighting left hand I was ready to try it.

I blocked another attack and lunged forwards which went terrible as my hand didn't have a tight enough grip on the sword and it wobbled left. The man gave an evil grin as though he knew something I didn't. But every pirate knows that trick, it's the old "I know I'm going to win" look, of course just because they think they are going to win doesn't mean they will.

Getting a firmer grip on the cutlass I slashed left, right, left, right again and again to make him dizzy but his eyes remained focused. He thought he was a toughie but to me he was still just another baddie in the game waiting to die.

He lunged again, I blocked again, I slashed, he blocked, he slashed, I ducked. And that's when I heard metal on metal. His cutlass had hit the bars and for that fatal moment he was giddy with the vibrations so I stood up taking my blade with my and spearing him through the middle. The blunt metal on muscle tissues allowed my body to run crazy with excitement and as the man slumped forwards still held up by the cutlass I felt pride.

I really was part of the dirty scum of the universe, and loving it.

I looked up with a crazy smile of pride and came face to face with a long missed face. Anamaria stood holding a bloody tipped sword and a large ring of keys.

"Ana!" I exclaimed drawing out the sword and casting it to one side without a sideways glance.

She smiled, "Glad to see your still in top form," she winked imitating the English accent of the Royal Navy.

"Damn straight!" I winked back.

Stepping over the body I listened as Anamaria explained quickly how they had entered and who was with her.

"…but we managed to take them out pretty easily and – is that your blood?" she asked pointing to the blood dripping from my hand.

"Aye, but it's nothing," I said nodding for her to go on. She looked at it for a moment before getting back into her explanation. We climbed the stairs at a run and met Gibbs who was standing outside keeping watch next to the body of the dead guard.

"Good to see yea!" he whispered patting me on the back, "Ok lets go,"

We sprinted down the corridor and cautiously turned the corners trying to keep volume down to a minimum. Left, right, up stairs, down stairs, left again, this place was a maze but Ana and Gibbs seemed to know it like the back of their hands. We dashed by the next corner and stopped off for a quick breather.

"So…when…are…we getting…Jack?" I panted clutching my sides, the few days on a starving belly with the clash of those deep steps had made me quite unfit and now my hand was throbbing quite unbearably.

"Jack's already out and waiting on the beach," she said keeping her eyes down the corridor.

"Oh…cheers…for getting…me out…first!" I panted huffily.

"You were too far down, to release you first would have caused to much of a stir to be able to get Jack out as well."

I didn't really mind at all, and they knew it. I just had to cause a fuss when the time called. However I was not feeling like running anymore. I had a stitch the size of a river, a desperately throbbing hand and the weakest feeling as though someone had starved me for a few days, which of course they had.

"Ok ready…?" Ana started,

"Wait Ana luv, I really don't think she's fit enough to go on just yet," spoke up the concerned voice of Gibbs.

"Me? Unfit? Nonsense!" I spat, "lets go," I nodded to Ana wishing I had just been big enough to admit I wasn't ready.

Ana glanced at me, "no I really don't think…"

"Lets just go," I said firmly, gritting my teeth. She nodded reluctantly.

"Go!" she whispered and once again we set of at a silent sprint down the stone embedded corridor.

I ran so hard my legs turned to jelly, my head turned to cotton wool and my hand turned into fire. I felt dizzy as hell but was determined to keep up with Gibbs and Ana just to prove that I wasn't as weak as Gibbs had said.

The corridors blurred into one rolling on and on for what seemed like miles. A mini maze in the middle of Jamaica. A maze of torture, murder and threat to all Pirates. My head was getting lighter and my legs became numb. Then I saw something, something through the dizziness. It wasn't in the corridor…it was like I was…dreaming.

It was a tall mansion, black as the night and dark with magic. No life lay near it, not grass nor tree. No birds flew by the stormy sky around it and no fish swam in the black treacherous waves of the sea. It was deserted, without feeling or knowing it stood alone. But there was something, something about it telling me that inside stirred an evil greater than hell itself. The Evil?

I blinked my eyes and the mansion disappeared, I was back in the dimly lit mouldy corridors. Luckily my feet had had the sense to follow Ana and Gibbs but I was still falling behind slightly.

We were slowing down.

"Alright," said Ana, "here we are!" She smiled at her cleverness for getting us this far.

"Here? Where is here when it has a name?" I asked slyly.

She sighed but managed to keep her smile fixated. "Here," she said, "is where we get out. It's a secret opening onto the wasteland behind the town. In other words it's where the washerwomen come to clean the guard's clothing."

"Ah!" I said, still panting, "that simple eh? And how would one know that it was here?"

She laughed at my posh English impression, "One's father used to work in this prison when one was little," she laughed.

Her father?! I didn't even know she had one let alone one which worked for the Red Coats!?! How she ever turned into a pirate I don't know. I watched her as she tugged the loose ring of a nearby door which just fell open. The afternoon sunlight gushed into the dark dank room and for a minute the flagstones swallowed in the temporary warmth, but only for a minute as we carefully slammed it shut safely on the other side.

I walked forwards a couple of paces, my palms outstretched, taking in the heat. It was glorious to be free again.

"Come on quick, before they find us," whispered Ana sprinting into the forest which surrounded us.

I legged it after her and we ran full pelt, once again, through the undergrowth. Splashes of sunlight managed to squeeze themselves through the thick leaves on the trees to nestle themselves in the luscious green grass. It was beautiful…for land anyway.

We ran for the next fifteen minutes before Gibbs refused bluntly to allow me to run anymore.

I collapsed on the soft velvety grass and gasped for air while laughing at my freedom. "Thanks," I said finally, which I seemed to have forgotten to say already.

"S'alright," said Gibbs getting embarrassed.

Ana smiled at me again and sat beside me. "How does it feel to be a free woman again?"

I laughed, "Absolutely FANTASTIC!" I yelled.

* * *

A/N: Hello again!! Wow I'm sorry I didn't post this up sooner! I thought I posted it up ages ago but when I got that review from Aurelia (thanx btw) I realised I actually hadn't! Oops! Well I hope you enjoyed the chappie…no Jack in it I know! Don't worry they will meet up in the next chappie and you guys can see him again :P 

Thankyou so much to all my reviewers! Especially to VagrantCandy who has been with me pretty much since the beginning! Thanks I really really appreciate it!

Please review again guys!


	24. Haunted by dreams

Chapter 24: Haunted by dreams

We turned a corner and there it was, stretching out before me, the vast blue sea. It sparkled and glimmered in the afternoon sun and I paused for a moment recognising it as my home. We were approaching a beach, small and deserted, with a figure stood feet paddling in the water, gazing out to the black ship which stood not far off in the water.

Jack and the Black Pearl.

My heart skipped a beat and my eyes closed. Everything was fine again. I had Jack and the Pearl and it's crew. I was no longer alone.

My eyes snapped back open and a new energy erupted in my legs, arms and chest so I released it running down to the beach. Soft white sand squeezed in between my toes and flew behind me as I ran towards the man.

"Jack!" I called, feeling tears in my eyes. He turned around but as he did so I flung myself onto him winding my arms around his neck and burying my face into those dread locks of his. It really was my Jack.

"Luv…" he pulled me away from him slowly and looked at me. He looked tired and starved. "Is it really you?" he whispered.

I nodded and he pulled me close again.

Gibbs and Ana watched edgily. It was not every day you saw a pirate, let alone your Captain, involved in what can only be described as a "soppy scene". Gibbs looked away and Ana suddenly became interested in a small spot of something on her sleeve.

Finally the hug ended. I didn't want to pull away from his warm embrace but we couldn't stay there forever, on that beach, our feet in the warm sea, the ship anchored only minutes away from us. I wish it could lasted forever, until the sun set, until the stars came out and lit the sky alight with white jewels, until the sun rose for a new day.

"Come on," came the voice of Ana. I snapped out of my daydream. Ana was stood, knee deep in the water, with a rowboat by the side of her. Gibbs climbed in and settled himself on the oars ready to head home.

The rest of the day went past in a whirl and soon it was time to turn in and see the night through. Weight of the food and rum rested in my belly as I turned into the only bed I knew. The party was still raging in all its fullness on the deck outside but my eyes were so heavy that if I were to stay awake much longer I fear I would have never woken up. Well not for a few weeks anyway.

The bed squashed as I lay on it giving a sense of extreme comfort. Sleeping in a cell had been a nightmare with nothing to offer but a few strands of straw and a hard concrete layer. I gently rested my head on the pillow and gazed up at the ceiling thinking of everything that had happened these past few days. It felt like years ago when we were safely in Tortuga. My eyes began to shut sleepily and I began to doze…

"come to me," someone whispered in the darkness, "come my sweet child"

A gloomy fog swirled ahead of me for a few moments and began to clear showing…a castle. Dark as the night it stood.

"come…"

Where was that voice coming from? It was so faint I could barely hear it..

A door swung shut loudly and I sat bolt upright on the bed. The noise from outside filtered back into my mind but I could still see the castle standing there in my mind.

"What's the matter luv?" came the familiar voice of Jack. I rubbed my head for a moment, but finally shook it.

Jack came over to me and sat on the bed. "Luv?" he questioned again.

"Really it's nothing Jack, just leave it," I moaned rubbing my head which had suddenly erupted in pain.

Wait a moment…

"Uh…Jack?"

"Aye?"

"Jack…why aren't you drunk?" The mere thought of a party and Captain Jack Sparrow, Captain of the Black Pearl, being sober at the other end of it…scared me.

He looked at me with those chocolate brown eyes and smiled, but there was something else there…something the smile was covering up.

"Jack…what's the matter?" I questioned.

"If you're not going to tell me yeh problems then why should I tell yeh mine?" he said cheekily.

I sighed, typical Jack. "I just had a nightmare, a silly childish nightmare."

There was a short silence until…

"About a black castle?"

I blinked. Had I said that or had…?

Slowly I looked up at him, his lips were parted. It had been him. Wordlessly I nodded.

"It's where we're headed. It's where…" he trailed off in a very non Jack manor.

"…it awaits," I finished. We stared at each other in wordless understanding.

And then the weight came back, that powerful shiftless weight of responsibility…of death. I had blocked it out for so long now, wishing it to just go away. But fate, it seemed, always had a way of catching up.

"Tomorrow…tomorrow we shall plot a course. It's time we ended this once and for all."

I nodded, the time had come. We had carefully footed around it for so long now that there was nowhere else to tread but directly on it.

"Don't be scared luv. It's what we are supposed to do."

"I'm not scared Jack. I only regret not seeing more of the world." I turned to look up at him, and I smiled. "If this is something I was put here to do, there would be no one else in the whole world I would rather do it with than you."

He smiled at me, "same goes for me."

Slowly he placed a weathered hand on my neck leant forwards and…

It was almost magical. As if my whole life pivoted around this point. Dreams would be made from it, whishing fantasies were granted.

But it only lasted for a moment, one breathtaking moment before…

"Cap'n, Ana got really drunk and, you'll never believe this, she started…oh…" the fool at the door stopped in his tracks when he finally took a moment to observe the scene in front of him. "I…ah…I'll…" and he shut the door behind him.

There was an awkward silence. But the moment had passed.

Gingerly I lay back down in bed feeling the tiredness sweep over my body again. Jack slumped down beside me muttering words of "fool" and "bloody kill him" under his breath.

Once again I let my eyes close but as I began to doze the image came back to me carrying with it those sickly words "come…come"

My eyes snapped back open and again I took a moment to remember where I was. It was like I was being haunted, hunted by this person, by…the Evil?

There was silence outside, the party was over. Each member of the crew would be tucked up in their hammocks fast asleep… and unaware if anything was to happen…

But the lookout would be there, watching out over the sea. He would warn us if anything were to happen. But still I felt uncomfortable.

The light sound of Jack sleeping beside me filled my ears and I edged closer to him. The tension around me began to slacken and I felt comforted. The touch of his skin sent ripples down my spine and I moved to look into his face. He looked so peaceful asleep, un haunted by dreams. Slowly I allowed my arm to slip over his chest and nuzzled my head into his shoulder.

Once again I allowed myself to drift asleep only this time no nightmares came and I slept soundly.

* * *

A/N: Bet you all thought I was gone forever eh? Well no fear, I am back and ready to put an ending on this story! There will probably be about 3 chapters left…maybe 4. Depending on whatever happens! Somehow I can't seem to control the story anymore…the characters do that by themselves!

I'm sorry for the extreamly late update, I hope you havn't all forgotten what has happened so far (in truth I had to read some parts again myself).

Please review!


	25. Show me the way

**Chapter 25: Show me the way.**

A foghorn sounded in my right ear so loudly that I jumped out of the bed in fright, landed on a broken bottle which seared into my foot causing me to yell out in pain, fall over backwards and land with a loud crash in the draws opposite me. It took me a few seconds to recover from the initial shock. And then I realised what the foghorn was, Jack snoring.

Carefully I stood up and rubbed my back where I had landed in the draws and then glanced at my foot. It wasn't too bad, only a few small scratches and a piece of glass hanging out of the end. I flicked it out and let the blood ooze out.

The foghorn sounded again, Jack had slept through the lot. I smiled faintly and then crept out of the door and into the early morning light. The sun had just risen and was still low in the sky casting a blaze of orange over the ship and the still water.

A few of the crew members were awake, slowly dragging their feet over the familiar surface of the ship's deck. Gibbs was stood at the helm lightly holding the wheel with sleepy eyes. I made my way up to him and he greeted me with a broad smile.

"Mornin' lass," he said cheerfully.

"Mornin' Gibbs, you look shattered, fancy letting me take over?" I suggested.

"Now that would be great!" he said with a laugh. I took hold of the wheel and relieved Gibbs of his duty.

The sea stretched out before me and a light breeze picked up. It was so good to be back on the Pearl. The crew attended their duties, occasionally coming up to me to have a quick chat or to say hello.

Soon the sun had moved and the sky had turned a brilliant blue with those fluffy little clouds prancing about in the sky like children in a field. A perfect scene. And then Jack emerged from the cabin looking like an un groomed gorilla which sent laughter over my face.

He glanced at me and I immediately shut my mouth and tried to stop laughing, but he was making it even more comical with that look on his face! He staggered over to me, which made it even more comical.

"What?" he questioned.

"Nothing," I giggled, trying to look innocent. He raised an eyebrow.

"How come your up already luv? And how come there was blood coming out of the cabin?"

I sighed, "Well if someone didn't snore so loudly then maybe I would still be asleep!" I giggled again and added, "Also if people didn't leave broken rum bottles on the floor it may cause less accidents."

"Ah," he said, trying to think of an excuse. "Well I…"

"Don't worry about it," I cut in, "It doesn't hurt. Anyway…" I searched for the words, "well….look…you see….we have to…" My face fell. Today I seemed to be going through all the emotions in five minutes.

Jack was looking at me, I could feel his eyes piercing through the top of my head. "I know," he whispered. Slowly I looked at him again. Our eyes locked, it was time.

Anamaria came and took the wheel from me and Jack and I made our way down into the main cabin. I shut the door behind me with a small click. Jack began rummaging through draws papers for all the maps he could find.

"How are we ever going to find it Jack?" I asked with complete hopelessness. The sea was so huge and we didn't have a clue to know where to even begin looking for the fortress with the Evil inside. No one had any idea where it was, why should that mean that we did? It was hopeless, surely?

"I don't know luv, maybe it'll just jump out at us, savvy?" his eyes remained on the nearest map.

"Uh no Jack, why would it just jump out at us?" I laughed, thinking it was a joke.

"No joke luv," he looked at me, his face was set on it.

I moved closer and peered at the map, nothing special on it. "But…how can it just…jump out at us?"

"You've had the dreams luv, and the visions. I know you have coz I have too. We both know what it looks like." It was strange to see Jack looking and talking so seriously, but he was right.

I glanced at the map again. But it was still just a plain boring old map of the Caribbean.

Minutes ticked by. We poured over map after map getting no where. Each island looked the same, every planned out route we ever took. Maps of England; maps of France; maps of Spain. Nothing.

Hours ticked by and still we gazed at maps finding nothing out of the ordinary. Jack was sat with his feet propped on the table leaning back into his chair. A frown was playing around with his face but boredom rested securely in his eyes. I was beginning to feel the same, frustrated. If we were supposed to go and rid of this…thing…then surely we should know where to go to do it?

The time snailed by and my frustration turned into boredom, and then back into frustration and then into anger and finally died down into a feeling of denial. I gazed at the map in front of me.

It was a very old map. It had long since lost its white colour and was now a mouldy yellow. It had obviously seen a few battles during it's time as there were burnt marks in places and even a few blood marks here and there. The word "Caribbean" was written across it in proud place confirming that, in fact, this was a map of the Caribbean. I wasn't looking at the map, not really. I found myself in a tired sort of mood and just sat there gazing at the word Caribbean.

I sat there for about five minutes ignoring the occasional rustle of Jack turning his map around. My eyes went lazy and the word blurred in front of me. Then…my brain began to work again…all on it's own.

The word Caribbean began being something else….it was an anagram. "Cabin bare". I blinked and looked at it again. Surely enough it was an anagram. Maybe it was my tired position, perhaps I was going mad. But I had this urge…there was a cabin at the very bottom of the ship, which had nothing in it. It had flooded ages ago and was covered in mould so we kept nothing in it. It was the only cabin that was bare in the whole ship.

Slowly I stood up, scraping my chair on the floor. Jack glanced up at the noise.

"What's wrong?" he questioned, but I was still thinking about it.

Suddenly I took off out of the door and tore down the stairs. I ran past the galley, which smelt of burnt sausages and oranges, down through the crew's quarters, where some were sat playing card games, down past the empty stock rooms and into the hull of the ship. The cells were as empty as they had been for the last few months but the smell of dirty pirates was still strong. It was dark but I made my way over the planks of wood without tripping.

The lonely cabin stood before me, but there was a strange light coming from beneath the doorframe. I paused only for a moment before placing my hand on the doorknob. It was warm. Why was it warm?

I heard Jack come to a stop behind me. He was silent. I gently turned the doorknob and slowly pushed open the door.

Jack gasped behind me and we were both blinded by the light that pierced our eyes. Some invisible thread drew us in and the door slammed behind us. The whole room was alight, but there was no lantern. A jolt seemed to move the floor and a huge map was displayed around the walls as if projected there. I gazed with wonder and fright wondering if I had ever woken up at all this morning. It was the Caribbean, funnily enough. But in 3D. I could see all the villages, all the hills, all the mountains, even the clouds. And then the ground lurched from under us and the map moved closer. Past different islands in a certain sequence, sometimes it went past the same island twice. And then when it was circling Jamaica for the third time another island appeared. It was small and…black. Black as the night, just like in those nightmares.

And then it vanished. Just like that. The room went dark and stopped moving.

Neither of us moved for a few moments. And then I turned to Jack.

"Did you just…or am I…?" I began.

"No I saw…" he started. Neither of us could speak. What we had just seen was…impossible…wasn't it?

The door opened behind me and Jack stepped out of the cabin pulling me out behind him. He took hold of my hand and dragged me back up all the layers of the ship and into the main cabin where he shut the door.

"That's the way," he whispered before pulling out a piece of parchment and scribbling down all of the co ordinations we had just seen.

I was still motionless. Things like that only happen in tales told by old drunk men in taverns, not in real life.

Jack stopped scribbling after a while and came to pull me into a hug. I breathed in his smell and brushed my cheek against his soft shirt which had been well worn. There were little holes in it where he had worn through it and the top two buttons were missing. Probably lost in a battle, or just a tavern brawl.

Maybe we only had a few more days left. Only a few days until everything stopped for us. So many thousands of people may be saved but the likely hood of us getting out the other end alive was low. Practically nothing. I'd heard the whispers. All die or none. Either we defeat the Evil and die, or the Evil survives but everyone else is killed. Was that the way it would be?

* * *

A/N: Heya again! Ug sorry about the delay again on this chappie. I've been trying to make it not so soppy again but the characters are being annoying and are yelling "NOOO" at me! Hehehe!

Thankyou so much to everyone who has reviewed! Please please review again! I love to get reviews, they make me ready to write the next chappie!


	26. The Last Day

A/N: I know, I know…shoot me. How long have I been writing this for now? Over a year? Argh, I'm bad . Well I always said there would be an ending to this story and damn it there will be no matter how bad it is! Warning, I'm not a good writer, this chapter is bad and I apologise. Please kill me so I never start any new stories!

Disclaimer: I should own it, I've been writing this for over a year. But I don't.

Chapter 26: The Last Day 

The next few days passed with a blink of an eye and disappeared into a fog of memory in the back of my mind. The day was drawing nearer, too near in my opinion. I had developed a sever case of the shakes and my heart wouldn't stop shaking. There was no way out of the destiny which lay before me.

Jack, who was still trying to act calm and cool about the whole situation, managed somehow to hide his fear. However there was no way he could hide the restlessness of his nights and the lack of sleep began to show around his eyes.

The crew. What is there to say about the crew? They were all clearly petrified. It showed that even the most fearless of pirates were still human.

An uncanny silence had filled the ship. Silence from the moment they opened their eyes in the morning until they closed them once again at night save from the courteous chit chat every now and then.

I stood at the helm, my hand laying shakily upon the mighty wheel of the ship. The sea looked the same as ever, dazzling blue with a hint of darkness lurking within it's midst. The island of Jamaica lay to the left of us as it had been yesterday. We were circling it for the second time.

"One more," I whispered to myself as my eyes reached the marker we originally started off at.

The crew murmured down on deck as their eyes too struck the same marker which was soon to be distracted from as a loud bang of a cabin door announced Jack's arrival.

To the crew's shock he was smiling, a large cheeky grin which tweaked his beard into the strange position I used to laugh over. Only this time I could not find the energy or the will to laugh.

The sombre mood onboard seemed to have gotten to everyone except, apparently, Jack who still stood there, hands on his hips, smiling at everyone.

In four rather large steps he made his way to the helm while the crew just stood and gaped in wonder.

"Right you scabbless dogs!" he shouted over the silence, "I'm sick of this mood."

The crew said nothing and moved not a muscle in their body as they gazed with confused eyes at their captain.

"And if you don't all start being the crew I once knew then I shall chuck the lot of you overboard and feed you to the fishies," he grinned as the breeze whipped at his dreadlocks.

No one moved.

Jack sighed.

"If these are the last few days of our life," he said a little more quietly yet still loud enough for the crew to hear, "then do you really want to spend them moping about? Enjoy what time you have!"

"We're going to thrash that thing anyway", he added as an afterthought.

I looked at him and found the corner of my lips moving slowly into a position I had forgotten for a while now. Jack looked round at me and, seeing my smile, turned back to the crew and hollered,

"If Annie can smile then damn it so can you lot! And if yeh all happy then tonight we will drain this ship of rum tonight!"

He had said the magic words. An almighty cheer erupted on deck as each and every pirate remembered the rather large stock of rum they held in their holds. They were jumping and skipping like young children who had apparently forgotten their pending doom.

"Damn," muttered Jack, "wish I hadn't said that."

Night finally fell and the deck had become a raging mass of excitement. Half the rum had disappeared within a matter of minutes the pirates simply opening their throats and pouring the liquid down into their bellies.

Song and laughter filled the sky and sea around us as the sun set over the image of Jamaica. But it was not so easy for me to forget and I found myself sat with legs dangling overboard gazing into the sunset.

"Drink up me harties yo ho," I whispered to myself as my crewmates burst into another chorus.

"Can't believe I let them…half gone already!" came a muttering from behind me.

I turned to see the outline of Jack and a bottle of precious rum clasped firmly into his hand. It was an image I had seen many times, the image that was burnt into my head each time I thought about my captain, my friend.

Gazing back to the sunset I said, "What does Rum matter anymore Jack?"

He heard me, I knew he had, but he chose to stay silent.

"Tomorrow, maybe the next day, all this could be over."

But the only sound from Jack was that of the bottle tipping to his lips and the splash as the liquid fell into his mouth.

"Or it could be the beginning of something else. Maybe…victory? All the rum we could ever drink?" I smiled at the fantasy I had created.

"Rum…" mumbled Jack, "Now that sounds like the life to live."

"Heros," he whispered as he sat beside me, his eyes gleaming. "Yeah, that's what we'll be. People will flock to the Pearl with barrels of the stuff," he took another mouthful and pointed into the sunset as though he could see the crowds before us.

"They aren't there you know," I giggled. It was the first time I had smiled in a long time, but it felt good.

"Course they are luv," he frowned at me licking his lips, "look closer."

It was clear he was a little more than rather drunk so I gazed at the sunset searching, if only for his sake, for some form of crowds flocking towards us cheering.

The smile played on my lips once more as the heat from the sun warmed my cheeks and cast a deep orange light on the world around me. Jack had a dazed expression upon his face as he smiled to the imaginary crowds.

And it was then when I felt the fear ebbing away and changing slowly into something else. Not excitement, nor anger, nor fear but contempt. Here I was and whatever destiny had to throw at me I would deal with. There was no choice, there never had been and no matter what happened I would never be alone. As drunk as he was, as crazy as he could be or whatever else that he was Jack was always there with me. The Sparrow and the Magpie.

If I died then I died at least I could be reunited with… with who? Mysteries to my past still laid unanswered and my memory was still as clouded as cotton wool but that didn't matter anymore. It was too late. Here I was. The Sparrow and the Magpie.

And the sun set, taking with it my fear.

The next morning dawned grey and clouded. We set off early catching the morning wind in our sails. Most of the crew moved slowly, a mixture of fear and intense hung over sluggishness.

It passed in a blur, those last few hours of sailing and soon we saw the black island appear, as if from nowhere, on the horizon.

"And so we finally reach it," whispered Ed who stood next to me with the look of fear and shock mingled in his face.

"Don't you worry your pretty head," I laughed, "It's not you going in!"

He turned to look at me with anxiety and pity. "If I could change places with you…"

"Don't be silly. This is what I'm here to do, you know that,"

"It's not right, you shouldn't have to…your only a…woman." He shook his head with sadness.

"Excuse me I think you'll find any woman is better than a man," I laughed half disgusted half humoured.

"How can you take it so easily?" he questioned, "how can you be so calm?"

"Whatever is going to happen will happen whether I'm afraid or not."

And with that I left him to gaze at the ever approaching island to go in search of Jack who was leaning upon the side gazing out, as most of the pirates were.

"Ready?" I asked as he turned towards me and smiled.

"Aye," he returned my smile, "I'm sick of waiting, let's get it over with."

A/N: Once again I apologise for how terrible the chapter is and how nothing really happens in it, but I couldn't just put them straight into the place where the Evil thingy lives so there had to be a boring chapter and here it is!

Please review telling me how terrible it is. Or you could lie and say it was great? No? Oh ok.

Well there is only one chapter to go now and I'll try to update it as soon as possible, like hopefully next week sometime.


	27. The End

**Chapter 27: The End.**

I sheathed my glinting sword which now sat around my waist, securely tucked up and ready for battle. What would happen behind those doors in that castle lay still a mystery but there was only one way that either Jack or I would find out. And that was to go in and face the thing that not only children but men and women feared more than anything else in the world.

The crew behind us stood like statues, grounded by fear and nightmares come true as they watched Jack and I climb into the rowboat. Slowly we were lowered into the black waters surrounding us and as I gazed up into the eyes of the crew, for what could be the last time, I gave a weak smile to see that they were all saluting us like some English Navy ship.

The gentle splash of the boat hitting the water distracted my attention and I waved goodbye to the crew like some child before turning to gaze into Jack's face.

"Scared?" he asked.

"Me? Course not," I joked. He smiled. "Absolutely petrified," I added with a grin.

Had I have been with anyone else on this mission the atmosphere would have been completely different but with Jack there was something about him which filled me with a warmth and allowed me to smile, even if I was staring death in the face.

As we rowed closer to the island the dark castle loomed into vision and I felt a terrible urge to look away from it, but then there was something else. Interest. An interest which seeped into my veins and pumped around my body like adrenaline. We were finally going to see it, the Evil. What men feared and ran from we were running to.

The boat came to a shuddering halt as it hit the rock which would have been a beach if it had not been that the whole island seemed dead. There were no plants, nothing growing from the ground, no birds or creatures just death. The land seemed scorched, blackened like charcoal, and the sky seemed burnt. There was no sun, no moon, no stars or clouds just blackness even though it was supposedly the day.

"This place gives me the chills," I whispered to Jack as he approached my side.

"Me too," he replied before turning to me and grasping my arms, "look, luv, if you don't want to do this then I can do it by myself."

I frowned and smiled at the same time, "and let you get all the credit? Never."

He grinned, "Let's get this over with then."

There was no path so we just made our way up through the dead undergrowth which was non-existent towards the gothic castle before us. I was half surprised that we had not yet been attacked. Surely if this thing was so great then it would have a hundred soldiers surrounding it, but there was nothing.

As we neared the black walls of the building I felt a chill drill itself through my spine. The air around us was cold but there was no wind or breeze, it was as though that had died too. Jack turned to me and gave me one of his grins.

"This must be a grand place to live in luv, especially if you like the colour black," and he winked cheekily which caused me to give a short giggle.

"Where's the door then?" I mused looking up at the wall. There were no windows, no openings and no sign of a door anywhere which made it hard to think of a way in.

"Must be round the other side?" Jack questioned while running a hand over the butt of his sword to check he hadn't lost it on the way.

We made our way around the outside of the massive castle picking our way through the rocks and stones which stood in our way. Finally our eyes were drawn to a great doors which stood proudly in their place. A huge gate made from black steel blocked the way and a drawbridge lay before it like a great tongue sticking out from the mouth of the castle.

"There's your door luv," came Jack's voice in a sharp whisper.

And then it hit me, the sudden silence of the island. Before, when we had been walking around the outside of the wall, we could hear the sound of the sea beating itself against the rocks below us but now even the sound of the sea had vanished even though it still lay around us as far as the eye could see. There was nothing to be heard which made it feel like someone had clogged up my ears, the silence pressing themselves upon them.

My worried face turned to meet Jack's panicked eyes and for the first time since landing on the island we shared a moment's fear.

My eyes flickered to the door and back to Jack and slowly he nodded to me. Pulling out our swords we quietly made our way towards the drawbridge.

The wood seemed rotten, as though it had been lying under water for years and a rank smell hit our noses like rotting flesh. Standing on the edge of the drawbridge I felt my body quiver as I slowly looked down to what it was covering and the sight which hit my eyes made me retch in the back of my throat and my stomach feel a sudden sickness.

There, below the bridge we were stood on, lay a thousand dead bodies. Every one of them rotting where they lay, their faces fixated in eternal fear. Men, women, mothers, fathers and worse…children. The bodies of toddlers and babies who were never given a chance in life but who had their lives cruelly snatched away from them in a merciless act of hatred.

I could feel the tears biting at the back of my eyes and silently spilling over onto my cheeks, but something else grew within me…anger. From the pit of my stomach it grew and raged like a beast. I could feel it fighting to get out, to kill the thing that had so cruelly snatched the lives of those people.

Jack's hand appeared on my shoulder and he pulled my eyes from the sight. He, too, had that same look of hatred in his eyes and his hand gripped tighter around his sword as he pulled me towards the door.

Together we walked closer and closer until we reached the gate which towered above us. Reaching forwards Jack lay a hand upon the cold steel only to pull it back in disgust. Turning his hand over he gazed at the red blood which covered the gate. The beast's within us howled again and lifting his sword high into the air Jack let it come smashing down upon the metal to create a deafening shatter which rang through the air finally giving some sound to the area around us.

Suddenly a splintering pain wrapped itself around my wrist and caused me to let out a gasp which struck Jack's attention. Grasping it I felt my face wince with the pain as my hand began to tremble. Lifting my sleeve Jack's face turned to shock as his eyes fell upon my tattoo which was now burning a fiery blue.

And then I felt my body move, not by command of myself but by something else, as though it was on automatic. My hand outstretched, fingers extended, I felt my feet move towards the gate and there my hands wrapped itself around the metal before me.

Another shot of pain joined the first like something gripping at my wrist and I felt it shift slightly down through the end of my hand. As the pain made it's way through each of the fingers grasping the cold metal I felt the relief throb to my wrist and finally to my hand once it had passed into the gate I was clutching.

And then the strangest thing happened. The gate lit up in a brilliant blue, only for a moment, before vanishing from sight leaving the entrance to the castle a gaping hole.

The silence hit us again save from the gasps for air which escaped my mouth.

"How did you do that?" asked Jack eventually in the dead of a whisper.

I turned to face him and gazed at the stunned and almost frightened look upon his face. Slowly I shook my head, unable to speak from the shock of what just happened.

For a moment longer we stood in shock before another waft of that putrid smell hit our noses and the reminder of those rotting bodies re-awakened the silenced beasts within us. Forgetting the gate for now my hand gripped tighter on the butt of my sword and the anger returned to my face.

"This ends today," I said loudly, not even caring that the sound of my voice bounced back and forth on the deserted terrain around us.

Moving first I walked, almost unafraid, into the castle with my sword outstretched before me. I was desperate to find it, desperate to feel my blade run through it's skin and hear the ripping of muscle and tissue as it took it's last breath in the world it did not belong in.

Jack's footprints gave a demanding echo as he appeared by my side and suddenly we both seemed to know where we were going. Forwards, left, right. Our feet just took us the way through the spindling corridors and grand rooms as though pushed by some imaginary force. Right, Right, forwards. And all the while there was no sign of life anywhere, no guards, no soldiers just rooms filled with black.

Had I been interested in the rooms we were entering, the corridors we were pacing, I would have noticed the surprisingly clean and tidy attire of the place. No slime dripped down the walls, no nasty smells hit our noses. But the beast within me was growling and there was nothing I could think about save the thing I was here to kill.

Finally our feet came to a halt before the largest doors we had come across yet. Studded with what looked like shiny metal bolts in the shape of bones it loomed over us like a motion of death.

We were there. And inside the room it lurked, waiting for us to enter. My face hardened, the grip on my sword growing tighter by the minute until my knuckles were as white as a ghost. The intake of breath through clenched teeth rattled by my side and nodding to Jack we lay our hands upon the door before us.

Confusion flicked briefly across my face as I felt a slight warmth sweep across my hand as it touched the door but as I swept a glance at Jack he seemed to have not noticed it.

He nodded again and together we pushed both our body weight against the door and felt it creak open.

The room before us was enormous, black and gothic in every way.

At the end of the hall stood a massive set of windows.

And before the windows stood a figure with it's back turned towards us.

Within my chest the beast angered with a fury I had never felt before and leaping out into my skin it consumed me. The rage screamed in my ears and leaving Jack behind I ran with the hatred of the world on my back towards the thing which had caused so much grief.

My footsteps rang out like a thousand bells across the floor and echoed upon the walls around me which caused the figure at the window to stir.

"You found me at last," came a hoarse voice from the window which caused me to stop dead in my tracks now only a few feet away from it.

The anger shook within me as the sleek body slowly turned. The face I had never seen but had grown to hate in the past few months finally filled my vision.

That's when I stopped. For the first time since I woke in Jack's ship with no memory of who or where I was, since I learnt of the Evil and what it did, since I was driven by the hatred for it. I stopped.

My face sunk into a confusion and disbelief as my eyes searched that face wildly for an answer to why.

And then it happened. Just standing there, it happened. A million memories which had been locked away from me returned like the doors of a flood gate opening. Washing it's way through my body I was forced to remember the life I had before Jack. A life with cars, schools and teachers….a life where my mother was taken from me. And that memory of falling through her grave to awaken on the ship where I stayed and forgot it all.

I remembered everything.

The clatter of metal hitting the floor sounded somewhere and it didn't occur to me that it was my sword which I had dropped.

Instead I felt tears of hope and confusion running down my face, dripping from my chin and landing on the floor.

"Mum?" I whispered to the figure before me. The figure which had killed so many.

Silence rang out again and there was no sound of Jack behind me, but I cared for nothing anymore. My whole life had been ripped from me as the purpose I was put here for hit me with it's sheer force.

The figure slowly took the final steps towards me and I gazed up into the eyes of my mother. Not dead like she was in my world, but alive.

"Annie…" her whisper sounded into the silence.

But there was something blocking the mother within her. She had been touched with evil and her body was now riddled with it, a hatred that had been pumped inside her by something else.

She was no longer the mother I knew, but a killer. A murderer.

But I couldn't do it. I couldn't stand there and watch her die again.

"Annie!" Jack shouted from behind me urgently.

But it was too late, I could see it coming but I felt no need to dodge.

Lifting her sword into the air my mother let it come crashing down, bursting through my stomach and threatening to snatch the life from me. But I no longer cared.

The pain struck me only after I heard the sound of the tendons and muscle inside me rip apart and I felt myself sink to the floor.

Somewhere around me Jack ran forwards towards her, his sword outstretched in a battle between them.

My blurred vision dropped to my chest where the sword still stuck out of me. The blood was seeping from it like a small fountain as I felt my body droop with weakness.

She wasn't my mother, not anymore. She had been taken over by evil so far that she had just sentenced her own daughter to death.

Jack's gasp hit my ears and with the strength I had left I snapped my eyes onto the two. She had him pinned to the ground with one foot, her sword lifted into the air ready to deal the last blow to the man I had grown to love.

The beast within me stirred one last time and with my final energy I forced myself onto my feet, my face set once again with hatred.

I no longer had a sword, she had taken it when she left her own in my chest. So summoning up the courage my hand gripped the handle of the cold sword which lay in my chest and gasped in pain as I pulled it free.

Her sword was already coming down towards Jack but to me everything seemed in slow motion. Rushing forwards I felt the beast roar as I plunged the sword into her chest and pushed her back onto the floor where she fell with a deafening crash.

Lifting the sword again and again I slashed at her with a fury and rage which came from nowhere. Again and again until I felt the weakness return to my bones and the tears to my face.

I stumbled backwards to be caught by a pair of hands which gently lowered me to the floor. A blurred face of Captain Jack Sparrow filled my vision.

"She's gone, Annie. You did it," he whispered to me as he clutched my body in his arms.

I felt a sob escape my mouth as I realised what I had done. In ridding the world of their doom I had killed my only mother.

Pain burnt it's way through my body as Jack cradled my head in his arms. I heard him sniff and through my shaky vision saw a tear escape his eye as he gazed down into my pale face.

"Annie…." He whispered.

"…I'm sorry Jack," I managed to say.

My vision started to darken and the room around me seemed to swallow itself until all I could see were the eyes of the man I loved.

"I love you."

And with those last words still dwindling in the darkness I shut my eyes for the last time and felt my body sink into nothingness.

The voices of quiet whispers filled my ears and a brilliant white light lit up before my closed eyes. A man wearing a mask filled my vision accompanied by that of a hospital room.

"Wake up Annie."

END


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